South Africa is anticipated to lose its AGOA status, according to a group of US lawmakers from both the Democratic and Republican parties, who have petitioned the White House to shift this year’s AGOA summit elsewhere.
25% of South African exports to the US, SA’s second-largest trading partner after China, are allowed duty-free entry under AGOA.
A report about the letter was first published in the New York Times on June 9. According to the New York Times, a bipartisan group of American legislators has urged the Biden administration to retaliate against South Africa for what it perceives to be the African nation’s backing of Russia’s conflict in Ukraine.
According to the newspaper, this would be accomplished by switching the location of the AGOA trade conference from South Africa to another nation. According to the New York Times, the group of politicians made the request in a letter that was received last week.
The South African government has refuted the accusation, and President Cyril Ramaphosa has ordered a separate probe into the matter.
