US could trump China in Africa by fixing rather than quitting pact
While the African Growth and Opportunity Act is not perfect, killing it off will hobble many economies on the continent and undermine a free flow of trade, writes David S Levin
The African continent simply cannot handle any more economic damage, so it will be catastrophic if President Donald Trump repeals the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) and goes lights out on Africa. Agoa falls into the big fat "trade" basket that’s been on the top of Trump’s agenda since taking office. He was certainly clear about his feelings on that during his election campaign. He pulled the plug on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) on his fifth day in office. And he’s pounding Mexico every day like a child whacking a candy-filled piñata at a birthday party. He is not wasting time getting started. There is talk that Trump may want to revoke other trade agreements including Agoa largely because, like TPP, they are multilateral deals he believes are lopsided and bad for the US. His thinking on trade is understandable. Many Americans are angry at how things have gone over the past decade. Many weren’t fans of how Barack Obama engaged with the rest of the world. Trump’s cam...
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