US Will Remove South Africa and Rwanda From AGOA Duty-Free Trade Program on Jan. 1, 2027

The Trump administration will cut South Africa and Rwanda out of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, the duty-free trade program for sub-Saharan Africa, starting January 1, 2027.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced the decision today, Nov. 2. He said President Trump notified Congress and both governments.

"President Trump found that the governments of Rwanda and South Africa are engaging in practices that are inconsistent with AGOA's eligibility criteria," Greer said in a statement.

Greer said the practices include "barriers that undermine American trade and investment and practices that pose a threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests in the region." The statement gave no specific examples of either.

What South Africa stands to lose

South Africa is AGOA's largest beneficiary. It shipped about $1.7 billion in goods to the US under the program in 2025, led by car parts, citrus fruit and wine.

The country's Department of Trade, Industry and Competition says AGOA exports make up only about 10 percent of its total exports to the US and 1 percent of its exports worldwide.

The ministry said late today it would support affected sectors and keep pursuing trade and investment with the US. "AGOA remains important to South Africa, but it does not constitute the totality of the economic relationship between South Africa and the United States," it said.

The citrus industry sees it differently. The export-dependent sector warned that its entire value chain "on both sides of the Atlantic, is now under threat," with jobs and the economic security of whole communities at stake.

The USTR cited corruption in South Africa's case, alongside the trade and security language.

The administration's list of grievances

The decision lands in a second Trump term full of friction with Pretoria. The administration has accused South Africa's government of being anti-white over its affirmative action policies. It has pressed Pretoria to drop affirmative action requirements for US businesses operating there, make crimes against farmers a priority offense, and repeal a land law that allows expropriation without compensation in some circumstances.

Washington has also objected to South Africa's foreign policy, including its genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice and its diplomatic ties with Iran. Israel denies the genocide allegation.

South Africa's government rejects the claim that it persecutes white people and says the accusation is a falsehood spread by fringe groups. The Associated Press describes the claim of widespread violence against white farmers as baseless. Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said last month that South Africa was preparing for the worst case on AGOA but would not surrender its sovereignty to US demands.

US Ambassador to South Africa Leo Brent Bozell III put the administration's position bluntly on X. "This was a predictable and preventable outcome resulting from the rejection by South Africa's government of real concerns raised by the US," he wrote.

Trade Minister Parks Tau called the decision "unfortunate." He said Washington was raising new issues that had not featured in the trade negotiations the two countries began in 2025. Tau said South Africa would "continue to accelerate the diversification of South Africa's export markets to protect jobs." President Cyril Ramaphosa has said in recent weeks that the country must prepare to be cut out and look for new deals with partners including China.

In Washington, Representative Richard Neal, the top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, called it "yet another trade decision grounded in grievance that flies in the face of what responsible policy should be." He urged the administration to explain more fully "what steps South Africa can take to be reinstated to the program."

Rwanda's separate track

Rwanda's case runs through different issues. The USTR cited human rights, political pluralism, the rule of law and workers' rights, in addition to trade barriers and security concerns.

The move comes barely a week after the US Treasury sanctioned Rwanda's defense ministry. Treasury said the ministry directed thousands of troops to fight alongside M23 rebels in eastern Congo and supplied weapons, equipment, logistics and training. Washington has also sanctioned other Rwandan individuals and institutions, including the military and a gold refinery.

Rwanda has been under a partial AGOA suspension since 2018, which bars apparel exports. Washington took that step after Kigali restricted imports of used clothing from the US. Its main AGOA exports are coffee and minerals. Rwanda had not responded publicly as of this evening.

What comes next

Greer said the administration "is working to ensure our African partners take the necessary steps to meet the eligibility criteria," which leaves a window open before the January date. Tau said South Africa had already submitted proposals to address American concerns.

The timing carries its own question. Trump extended AGOA in February, and the program's current authorization runs through December 31, 2026. The January 1 removal date falls one day after that. The administration has not said what it expects to happen to the program for the other 30-plus eligible countries after that date, or whether it will seek a longer renewal from Congress.