AGOA

US President announced that the suspension of duty-free treatment to all AGOA eligible goods in the agriculture sector, extending the deadline for South Africa to comply with US import of poultry and other meats. In a statement released yesterday South Africa’s department of trade and industry saying that the country will abide to the conditions of the African Growth and Opportunity ACT (AGOA), otherwise it will lose on its benefits. Tensions increased between the two countries when South Africa’s main concern was that US meat exports may contain the bacterial disease salmonella. However, the minister of South Africa’s department of trade and industry Rob Davies said the negotiations over the salmonella issue were concluded, meaning that the South African market is now open for 65 000 tonnes of US poultry import. African Dialogue anchor, Benjamin Moshtama spoke to Cyril Prinsloo, researcher of the Economic Diplomacy Programme of the South African Institute of International Affairs, Thabi Nkosi, senior economist of AgriSA and Kolofelo Maponya, CEO OF Daybreaks.