Trump's commercial wars hit Rwanda's Kagame on casual wear – Quartz

Donald Trump's trade war finally landed in Africa

The President of the United States put an end to the threats to remove Rwanda's privilege to export duty-free clothing to the United States. This decision is a consequence of the decision of the East African nation to increase its tariffs on imports of used clothing and footwear from the United States.

The suspension will not apply to other duty-free benefits of AGOA. will allocate 3% of its total exports to the United States, according to the US Trade Representative's office. Rwanda exported $ 43.7 million worth of goods under AGOA last year. In other words, this new rule would only have affected $ 1.3 million worth of goods if it had been applied last year.

The small country of East Africa is seeking to become a larger clothing exporter by hosting Chinese manufacturers to open local factories.

Used clothing imports are a hot topic in many African countries as governments juggle rhetoric about protecting nascent local industries and denial of second-hand clothing, including underwear, for their citizens. However, this is not a simple matter as used clothing imports and commerce create thousands of jobs, generate tax revenues and meet the needs of low-income families for whom locally produced clothing can sometimes be out of reach.

The Trump administration is pushing back such maneuvers in accordance with the President's "America First" trade policy, especially as the Association of Secondary Materials and Recycled claims a ban about 40,000 American jobs. Up to now, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda have all come back on similar proposals to increase tariffs on used clothing and shoes from the United States.

Rwanda has shown no sign of going back. Instead, in response to the suspension of tariffs, the country's development council says it will help the affected companies "move into new markets."

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Read next: Rwanda is a landlocked country with few natural resources. So why does China invest so much?

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