Workers at an EPZ textile factory. Some 40 African countries are eligible to join Agoa in 2015. PHOTO | FILE
President Barack Obama on Tuesday revoked South Sudan’s eligibility for the US preferential trade programme, the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa). Obama also removed Gambia from the programme and reinstated Guinea-Bissau. All these moves take effect on January 1.
A presidential proclamation announcing the actions did not specify the reasons for declaring South Sudan and Gambia ineligible for Agoa benefits. It instead referred to general standards for eligibility included in the law that established Agoa in 2000.
