The African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), set to expire in September, still offers a critical bridge for African exports to the United States.
Yet uncertainty around its renewal under the current US administration adds anxiety for exporters and discourages investment in long-term capacity.
Beyond Agoa, other frameworks like the African Continental Free Trade Area show promise. But uptake remains slow. Without harmonised customs protocols, digitised platforms and regional alignment, these policies risk becoming a paper framework rather than catalysts.
Meanwhile, global shifts, including increased United States tariffs on Chinese goods, are forcing supply chains to pivot in unpredictable ways. For African businesses, this often means longer lead times and higher input costs, even if they’re not directly targeted by new policies.
Resilience often outperforms rigidity. Businesses that build adaptable logistics systems, including diversified routing and contingency planning, are proving more capable of weathering disruption than those focused solely on predictability.
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