Minister of Trade and Industry, Prudence Sebahizi recently told the national broadcaster, RBA, that he and other African trade ministers met last week and agreed on a common strategy to address the impact of the U.S. trade policies.
'We agreed on four key actions that will help us tackle the consequences of this ongoing trade war. First, we need to unite and establish a solid, unified African trade policy. Second, we must accelerate intra-African trade.'
Sebahizi added that the remaining two points of consensus among African trade ministers were the need to seek alternative markets for African products, especially in other developing countries, and to increase the value-added processing of Africa's mineral resources before export.
This would help ensure that African nations benefit more substantially from their natural resources. The Minister further noted that although Rwanda is among the countries listed in the U.S. tariff hikes, it has not suffered immediate negative consequences due to the relatively lower rates applied.
'Rwanda is not among the countries heavily affected by the U.S. decision, because it was subjected to a 10% customs duty, among the lowest compared to other nations that seem to have been deliberately targeted by the United States,' he stated.
Early this month, President Donald Trump announced a series of increased tariffs on goods from several countries around the world.
In Africa, countries such as Botswana, Angola, Libya, South Africa, and Algeria saw tariffs ranging from 30% to 37% on their exports to the U.S. Rwanda and Burundi faced a 10% tariff, and Lesotho was hit with the highest in Africa at 50%.
Outside of Africa, the European Union faced a 20% tariff on exports to the U.S., while China was subjected to the highest rate globally, a staggering 54%.
IGIHE
Source : https://en.igihe.com/news/article/african-nations-unite-to-counter-u-s-trade-tariffs
