U.S. House of Representatives weighs in on a three-year AGOA extension

The United States House of Representatives could decide as early as Monday whether or not to extend the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which allows for duty-free goods from the continent.

But it’s still unclear where such a decision will leave South Africa amid strained relations with the US since the return of President Donald Trump to the White House.

The preferential access for hundreds of products under the act had been afforded to around 35 sub-Saharan countries when it ended in September last year.

Scheduled on the order paper under the legislative section of Monday's sitting of the House of Representatives is the consideration of the AGOA extension bill.

It will extend the duty-free access arrangement enjoyed since 2000 by another three years, to December 2028.

It proposes retroactively allowing countries to claw back duties paid to export goods to the US since the previous act ended almost four months ago.

Last month, the House Committee on Ways and Means approved the bill, with South Africa still included in the list ofcountries to benefit.

Several African countries are reported to have sent trade delegations to Washington to lobby for the bill to be passed.

The bill will require a two-thirds vote in the House of Representatives for approval.

It will then go on to the Senate before Trump is asked to sign the act into law, at which time he could decide to exclude South Africa from the list of beneficiaries.

In August, Trump imposed new trade tariffs for countries across the globe, with South Africa among the highest, at 30 percent.