New US import tariffs had largely reduced the value of South Africa’s AGOA benefits, but US trade representatives recommend that South Africa engage directly with US states when seeking to expand trade with the country.
This was said at a discussion, hosted by FairPlay founder François Baird, which focused on the US's Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and its benefits for African countries. It also examined US President Donald Trump’s trade and tariff policies, as well as how US policy could change under a future administration. The US recently extended Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA ) benefits to 2028.
Delegates heard that exporters are diversifying into other markets because of the unpredictability of US trade policy. South Africa’s citrus industry was described as an exception, because it had long pursued an export-diversification strategy.
The US trade experts advised South Africa to make greater use of its embassy in Washington to promote local export products, engage lobbyists to represent its interests in the US, and review policies that may be unpopular with US politicians.
Prof Diana Furchtgott-Roth, an adjunct professor at George Washington University and the University of the Free State, said South Africa’s ties with countries viewed as hostile to the US could hinder trade relations.
Andrew Hale, a fellow for international relations, trade and economics at the think tank Advancing American Freedom, said he believed the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration were illegal. He predicted that the US government would eventually have to repay the duties.
Hale said the administration opposed “one-size-fits-all” trade-preference programmes such as AGOA and was seeking to pressure countries into negotiating individual trade agreements.
He said the agreements were not binding because they had not been endorsed by the US Congress, and could eventually be terminated by either side.
Uncertainty after 2026
Furchtgott-Roth said US trade policy could change after the next presidential election, regardless of whether the new president was a Republican or Democrat.
She said a Democratic administration would probably be more supportive of a broader AGOA agreement than a Republican administration.
Discussion also centred around how rapid policy changes affect industries that export to the US.
Citrus exporters seek certainty
Jana Janse van Rensburg, representing South Africa’s citrus industry, said exports worked best when producers and importers had long-term agreements — in some cases lasting up to 20 years — that provided certainty.
She said the US accounted for approximately 5% of South Africa’s citrus exports.
Van Rensburg said other important markets, including the European Union, were becoming more restrictive by introducing phytosanitary requirements that could increase exporters’ costs.
Poultry industry says it was excluded
Izaak Breitenbach, CE of the South African Poultry Association, said the poultry industry was not an AGOA beneficiary.
He said the sector had been harmed by an annual quota allowing US chicken imports to enter without anti-dumping duties imposed in 2015. The quota, he argued, should have been scrapped because it was linked to benefits for other South African industries that had since been undermined by new US tariffs.
Breitenbach said the quota had instead been accepted and increased by the South African government during trade negotiations with the US, without consultation with the poultry industry or measures to offset the impact.
He said the poultry industry did not export to the US but was seeking to expand sales of cooked chicken products to the European Union and the Middle East.
“South African industries that are AGOA winners should find ways to compensate or support industries that sacrifice for their benefit,” he said.
yogashen.pillay@nationalmg.co.za