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The Office of the United States Trade Representative announced that President Donald Trump notified Congress and the governments concerned of his decision to end preferential access for South Africa and Rwanda under the African Growth and Opportunity Act from January 1 2027. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said an annual interagency review determined that both nations were engaging in practices inconsistent with AGOA eligibility criteria including barriers to US trade and investment along with actions that threaten American national security and foreign policy interests in the region. Greer added that the Trump administration is working to ensure its African partners take the necessary steps to meet those criteria according to the statement issued by his office.
The review cited additional concerns over rule of law political pluralism internationally recognized worker rights and human rights in Rwanda where the United States has also imposed sanctions on the defence ministry for its alleged support of M23 rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo a link reported by Reuters and the BBC. For South Africa the administration pointed to corruption as well as the same trade investment and security issues according to the US Trade Representative background document. Rwanda was previously removed from AGOA in 2018 over import tariffs on used clothing before its reinstatement while tensions with South Africa have grown over foreign policy differences including Pretoria’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
South Africa has been the largest beneficiary of the program with exports under AGOA reaching about 1.7 billion dollars in 2025 mainly motor vehicle parts citrus fruit and wine according to figures cited by Reuters the Congressional Research Service and South African authorities. Those shipments accounted for roughly 10 percent of South Africa’s total exports to the United States and 1 percent of its global exports in 2025 data from the country’s trade ministry shows. Total US imports claiming AGOA preferences stood at 5.04 billion dollars in 2025 down from higher levels in prior years according to Congressional Research Service statistics referenced across multiple outlets.
First enacted in 2000 AGOA grants eligible sub-Saharan African countries duty-free access to the US market for thousands of products as a cornerstone of American trade policy toward the region a Library of Congress report explains. The program lapsed in September 2025 before Congress passed a one-year retroactive extension through December 2026 that President Trump signed in February followed by a further extension to December 2028 in September according to Congressional Research Service summaries. Eligibility is determined annually by the president with 32 countries currently qualifying out of 49 potential beneficiaries and the review for 2027 began in June 2026.
South African Trade Minister Parks Tau called the termination unfortunate in statements carried by Al Jazeera and local media noting that some raised issues had not featured in prior negotiations despite concessions offered by Pretoria. The ministry said it would support impacted sectors while continuing to diversify export markets and strengthen economic ties with the United States and other partners including China where bilateral trade surpassed US levels in 2025. President Cyril Ramaphosa had previously indicated that South Africa was already preparing for possible exclusion by pursuing new agreements across Africa.
Agricultural and automotive industries stand to face higher tariffs that could affect competitiveness and employment with a citrus growers group describing the change as a serious blow that threatens jobs and town economies according to an AFP report. Analysts estimated the net tariff increase on qualifying goods at around 3.4 percentage points given existing duties while job loss projections ranged from several thousand to over 100000 depending on the source cited by The Globe and Mail and Business Day. Rwanda faces a smaller direct impact with total US imports from the country reaching 43 million dollars in 2025 focused on coffee tea and minerals according to trade data compiled by Reuters.
The exclusions will not bar all bilateral trade but will subject affected products to standard US tariff rates rather than duty-free entry a distinction emphasized in analyses from The Washington Post and bne IntelliNews. Notification to Congress and the countries satisfied the 60-day requirement under the program allowing the changes to take effect in January as outlined in the US Trade Representative release. The decision reflects ongoing annual reviews that have adjusted eligibility for other nations in recent years including redesignations and removals for governance and rights concerns.
