South Africa has accused the United States of raising “new issues” after President Donald Trump announced plans to kick the country out of a duty-free trade agreement, a move the government says will badly hurt the economy.
Trump notified Congress on Monday of his intention to end South Africa’s eligibility for the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), effective from 1 January 2027. The decision gives the country 60 days before the proposed termination takes effect.
Trade Minister Parks Tau said Washington was introducing concerns that had not previously been part of negotiations that began in 2025, despite Pretoria offering extra concessions.
“It is however unfortunate that the US is now raising new issues that have not been the basis for discussions as part of the negotiations process that commenced in 2025,” Tau said in a statement on Monday.
The minister acknowledged the impact on workers, exporters and businesses but said the government would support affected industries.
“AGOA remains important to South Africa, but it does not constitute the totality of the economic relationship between South Africa and the United States,” he said.
Why the US is cutting South Africa from AGOA
The US Trade Representative said an interagency review found South African practices inconsistent with AGOA eligibility requirements.
Washington cited five key concerns:
The US statement did not specify individual corruption cases or particular foreign relationships but comes as the Trump administration has stepped up criticism of Pretoria’s alignment with Russia and Iran.
AGOA was established in May 2000 as an act of economic goodwill to help grow South Africa’s post-apartheid economy. The scheme’s rigorous eligibility requirements include continual progress towards a market-based economy and a commitment to the rule of law.
Economic impact on key sectors
The decision affects exporters relying on preferential access to the US market. South Africa is the scheme’s largest beneficiary, though the economic exposure has already declined sharply.
About 28% of South African exports to the US entered under AGOA in 2024, worth about $4 billion (R72 billion). This dropped to about 10% in 2025, worth about $1.7 billion (R30.6 billion).
The programme provides duty-free access to the US market for South African vehicles, the country’s second-largest export earner to the United States after precious metals, according to the South African Revenue Service.
Agriculture and agro-processing, automotive manufacturing, and mining sectors face the biggest hit. Hundreds of thousands of South Africans employed through AGOA-dependent industries are now at risk.
The exclusion also affects Rwanda, adding to uncertainty for African exporters who have relied on the preferential trade terms.
Political backlash and blame game
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has blamed the exclusion on what it called the ANC’s “diplomatic ineptitude” and failed foreign policy.
DA spokesperson on international relations Ryan Smith said the development was avoidable and completely unnecessary in the context of sound economic diplomacy.
“This decision is a devastating blow to the South African economy, especially the agriculture and agro-processing, automotive manufacturing, and mining sectors,” Smith said.
“Hundreds of thousands of South Africans employed through AGOA-dependent industries will now pay the price for Minister Lamola’s ideological obstinacy and sheer diplomatic ineptitude.”
Smith blamed International Relations Minister Lamola for failing to protect South Africa’s economic interests with the USA, the country’s second-largest trading partner.
“As our country’s chief diplomat, Minister Lamola is tasked with placing the interests of South African citizens ahead of party-political whims,” he said.
The DA also pointed to what it described as the ANC’s alignment with “international despots and human rights abusers in Russia and Iran” as damaging South Africa’s standing with liberal democracies.
Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) leader Dr Corne Mulder said the ANC had been warned repeatedly about the consequences of its foreign policy choices.
“The ANC and President Ramaphosa are wholly to blame for AGOA disaster and economic consequences,” Mulder said in a media statement.
The FF Plus said it and other organisations had visited Washington several times to argue that ordinary South Africans should not be punished for ANC foreign policy and that South Africa should not be removed from AGOA.
The party claimed the ANC threatened parties that advocated South Africa’s case internationally with prosecution, including possible high-treason charges.
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COSATU general secretary Solly Mapaila took a different view, blaming lobby groups AfriForum and Solidarity for helping strain South Africa-US relations.
“They should explain the consequences to affected farmers and workers,” Mapaila said on 3 November.
South Africa’s cabinet had welcomed an August extension of AGOA through 31 December 2028, which would have maintained preferential access for eligible South African products. The November action is therefore a proposed country-specific termination despite that broader extension.
Minister Tau said AGOA exports represented roughly 1% of South Africa’s total global exports in 2025, with about 89% of exports to the US entering under ordinary World Trade Organisation most-favoured-nation terms.
The proposed termination will take effect on 1 January unless the process is reversed or otherwise resolved through diplomatic channels.
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