· From September 1st, China has scrapped import tariffs on 98% of the goods imported from nine of Africa’s least-developed countries. Agricultural and mineral imports from the Central African Republic (CAR), Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Guinea, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sudan and Togo, are expected to benefit from the move.
Since September 1st, China has scrapped import tariffs on 98% of the goods imported from nine of Africa’s least-developed countries. Agricultural and mineral imports from the Central African Republic (CAR), Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Guinea, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sudan and Togo, will benefit from the move.
The announcement is reportedly a follow-up to the announcement made by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the China-Africa summit in November. He stated that steps would be taken to boost the import of agricultural products from Africa to $300 (€302 billion) over the next three years, eventually reaching $300 billion a year by 2035. China’s imports of food and agriculture sales from Africa reached $161 billion in 2020 — representing only 2.6% of China’s total imports.
Experts are of the view that China will benefit more than Africa from the elimination of the tariffs. China has a growing dependence on African energy and minerals, including cobalt and coal. The measure will facilitate China acquiring more raw materials and minerals from Africa. Countries like Mozambique that rely on food imports hardly derive any advantage from the Chinese incentive.
A different view projected by some economists is that African agricultural economies may stand to gain in the long run as China is the world’s biggest food importer. For Africa, the agricultural sector is the biggest employer and driver of economic activity. on the African continent. China has shown interest in engaging in high-tech food production in Africa to feed its growing population.
Also read;
https://trendsnafrica.com/
https://trendsnafrica.com/
