Africa-Press – Mozambique. The Mozambican government is considering a free trade agreement with the United States of America (USA) administration as a way of negotiating a reduction in tariffs imposed in early April, AIM Moçambique reports.
Government spokesman Inocêncio Impissa points to the renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) as one of the ways to achieve this goal. AGOA benefits Mozambique and other sub-Saharan African countries and allows duty-free access to the US market for a wide range of products.
Speaking to the press in Maputo yesterday after the 20th ordinary session of the Council of Ministers, Impissa said that the renewal of AGOA would pave the way to “evaluate the possibility of negotiating a free trade agreement between Mozambique and the United States, in order to negotiate a reduction in tariffs”.
US President Donald Trump has decreed the proposal for a general tariff of 16 percent on all imports from Mozambique.
All nations exporting to the US are subject to a tariff of at least ten percent, but there will be much higher tariffs against countries that Trump chooses, for whatever reason, or that he wishes to sanction.
The Mozambican executive will therefore continue to advocate for the review of this trade tariff by the US administration.
“The effort that the country has to make,” Impissa continued, “or will make, is naturally to create the space for dialogue that has existed between Mozambique and the United States, to naturally find other ways to explore this opening to allow the relationship, in terms of trade relations, to take place in a much more reliable and more pleasant environment, both for Mozambique and for the United States.”
If it proves impossible to remove the tariff or reduce the percentage, there remains the possibility of exploring other markets, Impissa said.
“It is an opportunity to explore other markets, as a way of also ensuring that the world market is naturally open, for Mozambique and beyond,” Impissa said, stressing that the 90-day moratorium for the effective implementation of the decision is being used to negotiate the best model for the country.
The tariffs that Trump imposed on other members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) are as follows: Madagascar (47%), Mauritius (40%), Botswana (37%), Angola (32%), South Africa (30%), Namibia (21%), Zimbabwe (18%), Zambia (17%), Malawi (17%) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (11%).
The other SADC members (Tanzania, Eswatini and Comoros) are subject to the basic tariff of 10%. while, Inexplicably, one SADC member, the Seychelles, is not on the list at all.
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