South Africa’s access to some of the duty-free trade benefits of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) hangs in the balance as
the nation enters “extra time” in meeting the demands of the US for the elimination of barriers to US poultry, beef and pork trade.
With South Africa’s deadline to concede to the US’s Agoa demands having passed without resolution last week, Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies on Monday said the “whistle has not been blown” yet and there was hope of the US showing leniency in not implementing the promised partial restrictions on the pact meant to bolster trade with emerging economies.
On November 5, US President Barack Obama said duty-free benefits on all Agoa-eligible agricultural goods would be suspended should South Africa fail to implement, by December 31, the agreement reached in Paris in June 2015 to ease restrictions on the three meats and improve market access for the US.
South Africa also had until March 1 to prove that it complied fully with the Agoa eligibility criteria or the benefits would be further limited, held in suspension with an extension into other Agoa-agreed products, or terminated altogether.
“South Africa believes that, with some flexibility from both sides, the final touches to the agreement, on which 95% of the work has been done, can be completed with some extra time,” Davies stated.
The loss of benefits has been estimated to potentially cost South Africa over $7-million across several sectors, with the suspension affecting ±R2.4-billion of yearly agricultural exports.
