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Solidarity is urgently calling on the US Congress to extend the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) over the longer term to ensure economic security for workers and businesses in South Africa.
 
AGOA expired on 30 September 2025 after the US Congress failed to extend it in time. The Act was originally passed in May 2000 and enabled qualifying countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to export around 1 800 products tariff-free to the US.
 
The Act was initially valid for 15 years and was extended for another 10 years in 2015.
 
Earlier this year, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would extend the AGOA agreement by three years. However, this bill still needs to be discussed by the Senate.
 
According to Jaco Kleynhans, head of public relations at Solidarity, the Senate this week, as part of a massive omnibus budget bill, decided to extend AGOA until 31 December 2026, making it retroactive from 30 September 2025.
 
This step is welcomed by Solidarity, but it offers extremely limited certainty.
 
“An extension until the end of 2026 is better than nothing, but it is far too short to justify the kinds of investment and long-term production decisions that will enable job creation in South Africa,” says Kleynhans.
 
As matters stand, the issue of a longer extension – whether the proposed three years or any other period – still needs to be discussed by the Senate. It must then be addressed in a new reconciled bill by both houses of Congress.
 
According to Kleynhans, Solidarity will begin a process today to gather support within the US Congress for a significant long-term extension of AGOA and the urgent consideration of such an extension bill.
 
“The current AGOA Act still stipulates that the US president can decide annually which countries qualify for the programme. The White House therefore has the full right to compile a new list of beneficiary countries.
 
“For now, however, the most likely scenario is that the 2025 list of countries will be retained and that, if the Act is extended again, a new list will only come into effect from 1 January 2027,” says Kleynhans.
 
However, he emphasises the extent of the uncertainty that still prevails over tariffs. This also applies to tariffs on exports from Africa, while the world continues to await the US Supreme Court’s ruling on the constitutionality of these tariffs.
 
Solidarity’s intervention, however, is for the benefit of South African workers.
 
“Workers should not pay the price for geopolitical tension or legislative delay. AGOA is not a favour to governments – it is an investment in people, jobs and stability. Without long-term security, thousands of jobs are unnecessarily put at risk,” says Kleynhans.
 
Solidarity therefore calls on the US Congress to act swiftly and responsibly by extending AGOA, thereby protecting job creation, trade and economic stability in Southern Africa.

Issued by Solidarity