Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has downplayed the US decision to remove the East African country from a significant trade agreement. Last week, US President Joe Biden announced the expulsion of Uganda and three other nations from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The US had previously hinted at such action after Uganda passed a stringent new anti-homosexuality law. On Sunday, President Museveni urged Ugandans not to overly worry about the situation.
“Some of these actors in the Western world overestimate themselves and underestimate the freedom fihters of Africa,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.
Agoa, introduced in 2000, grants eligible sub-Saharan African nations duty-free access to the United States for more than 1,800 products. Under this arrangement, Uganda has been exporting items such as coffee and textiles to the US for years without incurring any import taxes.
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However, the US is not one of Uganda’s primary export markets, so the expulsion is unlikely to inflict significant economic distress.
Before the 20th Agoa forum in South Africa, President Joe Biden unveiled plans to expel Uganda, Gabon, Niger, and the Central African Republic (CAR) from the program.
He cited “gross violations of internationally recognized human rights” by the governments of the CAR and Uganda as the reason for their removal from the program. The CAR has been collaborating closely with the Russian Wagner group, which has been accused of killing civilians and committing other abuses.
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Niger and Gabon, both under military rule following coups, are ineligible for Agoa because they “have not established, or are not making continual progress toward establishing the protection of political pluralism and the rule of law,” according to the president.
In May, the US had issued a warning about the potential expulsion of Uganda from Agoa after the country passed its stringent new anti-homosexuality law. This law, which imposes a death penalty for certain same-sex acts, faced global condemnation.
In a statement on Sunday, President Yoweri Museveni maintained, “As far as Uganda is concerned, we have the capacity to achieve our growth and transformation targets, even if some of the actors do not support us.”
Earlier, his senior aide and son-in-law, Odrek Rwabwogo, had issued a caution that the expulsion would severely affect Ugandan farmers and small business owners.
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The expulsion from Agoa is set to take effect at the beginning of the next year. In August, the World Bank had declared a suspension of new loans to Uganda following the anti-homosexuality bill. Last month, the US State Department issued a warning about the risks associated with doing business in the country.
Mr. Museveni has accused the World Bank of attempting to “coerce” the government into dropping the controversial legislation.