Wire reporting: (AP, via KSAT)

The Trump administration has notified Congress that it intends to end South Africa's and Rwanda's eligibility under the African Growth and Opportunity Act from Jan. 1, 2027^1,2,5,8,14.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said President Donald Trump found both governments engaged in practices inconsistent with AGOA rules, including barriers to U.S. trade and investment and issues the administration tied to national security and foreign policy in the region^8,9,13.

AGOA, in place since 2000, lets eligible sub-Saharan countries ship thousands of qualifying goods to the United States without ordinary import duties^5,9.

South Africa has been the largest user of the program, with about $1.7 billion in AGOA exports in 2025, down from a higher 2024 figure cited by Pretoria^3,8,14.

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau said exclusion would not end commerce with the United States and that AGOA accounts for about 10 percent of South Africa's exports to the U.S., or about 1 percent of its global exports^3,6,8.

Tau said Pretoria has 60 days after the notice to address U.S. concerns and would keep talking while looking for other markets^3,6,8.

Cosatu parliamentary coordinator Matthew Parks put likely job losses at 3,000 and a worst case at 10,000, concentrated in agriculture and manufacturing towns, including Western Cape citrus areas^3,6.

Citrus industry officials said U.S. shipments support tens of thousands of farm-level jobs in the Western and Northern Cape and that ordinary U.S. duties plus an existing 12.5 percent tariff would hit mandarins, lemons and grapefruit³.

Rep. Gregory Meeks and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said in a joint statement that the move risked U.S. commercial interests and urged talks during the notification period².

Relations between Washington and Pretoria have been strained over land, affirmative-action and foreign-policy disputes; Rwanda's case is reported alongside U.S. pressure over the Congo conflict^5,9,13.

What remains unclear is which specific trade barriers USTR will treat as remediable before 2027, and how many jobs would actually be lost if ordinary tariffs replace AGOA rates^8,3.