US to suspend South Africa and Rwanda from duty-free trade access

The United States has said it will suspend South Africa and Rwanda from duty-free trade benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), effective January 1, 2027. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Monday that both countries had failed to meet AGOA’s eligibility criteria. South Africa has been the largest beneficiary of the programme, exporting about $1.7bn worth of goods to the US under AGOA in 2025. “President Trump found that the governments of Rwanda and South Africa are engaging in practices that are inconsistent with AGOA’s eligibility criteria,” Greer said in a statement.