Amid ongoing uncertainty over deteriorating trade relations between Pretoria and Washington following President Donald Trump’s April 2 announcement of “reciprocal tariffs”, Tanzania has imposed an immediate ban on all agricultural imports from South Africa.
The ban, which came into effect on Thursday, April 24, and includes agricultural imports from Malawi, comes after a long-standing restriction by South Africa on Tanzanian bananas.
Recently, trade relations with Tanzania worsened after South Africa and Malawi imposed import restrictions on Tanzanian goods.
This policy has been a persistent source of contention between the two countries.
In March, Malawi followed suit by introducing a sweeping two-year ban on a range of agricultural imports from Tanzania, including maize flour, fresh milk, rice, ginger, bananas and maize.
Officials in Lilongwe claimed the measure was designed to protect local producers and conserve foreign exchange reserves.
Tanzania’s agriculture minister, Hussein Bashe, strongly criticised the restrictions, defending his country’s agri ban by saying: “We are taking this step to protect our business interests... in business, we must all respect each other.”
He added that the import restrictions imposed by Malawi and South Africa were “unjust and detrimental” to Tanzanian traders.
In addition to the import ban, Tanzania has announced it will restrict the transit of agricultural goods from third countries to landlocked Malawi and will halt the export of Tanzanian fertilisers to its southern neighbour.
The move has already disrupted trade flows, with trucks carrying agricultural products stranded at the border or seeking alternative routes.
At the Kasumulu crossing, a usually busy border for trade between Malawi and Tanzania, the impact of the April 24 ban was immediate.
“On a normal day, more than 15 lorries loaded with agricultural produce would cross the frontier,” one driver told the BBC. But on Thursday, only a handful of fuel trucks were seen on the Tanzanian side, while empty lorries were parked on the Malawian side.
Malawi's trade minister, Vitumbiko Mumba, previously defended his country’s ban as “a strategic move to create an environment where local businesses can thrive without the immediate pressure of foreign competition.”
Nonetheless, the fallout has been significant. Tanzanian exports to Malawi had tripled between 2018 and 2023, according to official figures, making the southern neighbour an increasingly important trading partner. Meanwhile, South Africa’s fruit exports — such as apples and grapes — to Tanzania have now been cut off.
Tanzania has stated that the measures are not intended to provoke a trade war.
“No Tanzanian will die from a lack of South African grapes or apples,” Bashe said.
“We are taking these actions to protect Tanzanian interests.”
The ban has also had humanitarian consequences. The BBC reports that tonnes of bananas and tomatoes have spoiled at the border after being denied entry into Malawi.
In one social media post, Bashe shared a video showing rotting bananas piled inside a stranded truck, warning that Tanzania could no longer tolerate what he called unfair treatment.
Happy Zulu, a Malawian trader, told the BBC that drivers were now struggling to find alternative cargo.
“It’s been very difficult for them because they are used to carrying agricultural goods, and now they can’t not carry just bananas and tomatoes, but even maize and potatoes.”
Landlocked Malawi may face the greatest logistical challenge.
The country relies heavily on Tanzanian ports, particularly Dar es Salaam, to export key commodities like tobacco, sugar and soybeans. Losing access could force Malawi to shift to more expensive routes via Mozambican ports at Beira and Nacala.
Tanzania, Malawi and South Africa are all members of the Southern African Development Community, a regional bloc meant to promote economic integration. The trade row comes at a time when the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), launched in 2021, is supposed to be easing barriers to commerce across the continent.
Despite the mounting disruption, diplomatic efforts to resolve the tensions have so far been fruitless.
While Bashe has indicated that fresh talks are under way, neither South Africa nor Malawi has formally responded to Tanzania’s latest actions.
As the dispute continues, observers warn of broader consequences for regional trade and cooperation. What began as targeted trade restrictions now threatens to unravel years of progress toward economic unity in southern Africa.
