President Donald Trump has signed a short-term reauthorization of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), providing a temporary “lifeline” to African exporters while signaling a fundamental shift in U.S.-Africa trade relations. The legislation, signed into law on February 3, 2026, extends the trade preference program through December 31, 2026, with retroactive effect to September 30, 2025, when the previous deal was allowed to expire.
The extension follows months of uncertainty that had threatened tens of thousands of jobs across the continent, particularly in the apparel and automotive sectors. While the U.S. House of Representatives had initially proposed a three-year renewal, the Senate, aligned with White House demands for a “fundamental overhaul,” reduced the term to a single year.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer emphasized that the one-year window is intended to “modernize” the 26-year-old agreement to align with the “America First” policy. Under the new terms, African nations will be expected to further open their markets to U.S. agricultural products and manufactured goods. “AGOA for the 21st century must demand more from our trading partners and yield more market access for U.S. businesses,” Greer stated.
Notably, the extension does not override the “Liberation Day” tariffs of 30% imposed by the Trump administration last year. For example, South African fruit and agricultural exports will now be subject to the 30% tariff plus a 0% duty fee under AGOA, rather than the much higher “Most Favoured Nation” rates that would have applied in the program’s absence.
The short duration of the extension has received a lukewarm reception in Pretoria and Abuja.
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South Africa: Eligibility remains a point of tension. President Trump recently announced that South Africa would not be invited to the 2026 summit in Miami due to its ties with rival global powers, leaving the country’s long-term status in the program unclear.
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Nigeria: As Africa’s most populous nation seeks to ramp up its oil and non-oil exports, the “temporary breather” offers little of the long-term certainty required for large-scale industrial investment.
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Lesotho and Kenya: For apparel-dependent nations, the extension prevents immediate collapse but creates a “one-season” planning horizon that manufacturers warn could jeopardize future orders from U.S. brands like Levi’s and Wrangler.
The one-year extension serves as a transition period. During this time, the U.S. Trade Office plans to rework the Harmonized Tariff Schedule and negotiate more reciprocal terms. For the USAfrica community, the message from Washington is clear: the era of non-reciprocal trade is ending, and the next phase of U.S.-Africa engagement will be strictly defined by American commercial interests and market access.
