The Zimbabwean government is pinning its hopes on the Trump administration – with president elect Donald Trump taking office on Friday this week – to build economic ties. This follows the announcement by outgoing United States president Barack Obama that the US has extended sanctions against Zimbabwe by at least another year.
Higher Education Minister Jonathan Moyo said that the Obama administration had “made no meaningful difference” regarding its policy towards Africa, expressing hope that the incoming Donald Trump administration would rebuild ties with Harare.
Zimbabwe may be disappointed though as most analysts are predicting at best an indifferent approach to Africa by the Trump administration, especially in light of Trump’s expressed ambitions to focus more on locally produced goods.
Trump has yet to clarify his foreign policy in relation to Africa, though the United States embassy in South Africa told FTW that the African Growth and Opportunity Act – signed into Congress in 2015 for another 10 years – could not be reversed.
