Navigating the politics of AGOA: Is it worth the efforts?

The popular adage that there is “no such thing as free lunch” is still valid in many businesses and other collaborative transactions. Since the enacting of the African Trade and Opportunity Act (AGOA) in 2000, many African countries have lined up to be members. While AGOA has provided trade benefits to some African countries it hasn’t provided significant benefits to the majority of countries. AGOA, at the point of enaction in 2000, was supposed to provide duty-free access to the US market for a selected number of agricultural and manufactured goods from eligible African countries. To date about 35 African countries, out of a total of 54, are eligible. Of the eligible countries, only a handful of countries have recoded significant benefits. These include South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Lesotho, Ethiopia, and Madagascar. The key question is why the US singularly determines the terms and conditions of AGOA when it is clear that both Africa and US are net beneficiaries of AGOA. Does Sub-Saharan Africa need this agreement? Afterall the continent doesn’t have similar agreements with some of it largest trading partners- e.g. China and EU.