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· The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) entered into a trade partnership with the United States, which will enable the Central African Republic to get duty free access to US markets
· A declaration to this effect was issued by outgoing US President Donald Trump recently
· AGOA was enacted in 2000. Since then, AGOA has been the main platform of the US in its engagement with the African countries mainly in the sub- Saharan Africa by providing eligible Sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the US market for over 1,800 products
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) entered into a trade partnership with the United States, which will enable the Central African Republic to get duty free access to US markets. A declaration to this effect was issued by outgoing US President Donald
Trump recently.
The US sanctions against DRC, which was imposed some 10 year ago, was on account of the alleged human rights violations. Sanctions played out as removal of DRC from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), an instrument that allowed African countries duty free access to the US market for a wide range of goods. The US held former
President of DRC Joseph Kabila, responsible for the violations. DRC President Tshisekedi welcomed the decision. Since assuming power, he has been instrumental in reforming the country particularly in terms of strengthening the democratic institutions, protecting human rights, and fighting against corruption.
AGOA was enacted in 2000. Since then, AGOA has been the main platform of the US in its engagement with the African countries mainly in the sub- Saharan Africa by providing eligible Sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the US market for over 1,800 products. More than 5,000 products are eligible for duty-free access under the Generalized System of Preferences program. DR Congo’s main exports, copper and cobalt, are included in the agreement. But these metals area already in the Generalized Special Preference (GSP), thereby eligible for duty free access to the US market..
The announcement comes during a turbulent period in the DRC’s politics, both economically and politically. President Tshisekedi, who has been in office since January 2019, ended a coalition in December which was dominated by supporters of his powerful predecessor Joseph Kabila. The latter ruled the country iron fisted for 18 years. Lifting DRC from the negative list of AGOA is a recognition by the US of Tshisekedi’s commitment to bringing about change in the Congolese people’s outlook. The return of DRC to AGOA is a significant achievement and a manifestation of the Privileged Partnership for Peace and Prosperity between the US and DRC.
The United States established the US-DRC Privileged Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in 2019 seeks to address the impact of pandemics, promote peace and security, build a stronger bilateral relationship, and to deliver results for the U.S. and Congolese people.
