The Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce has reassured Nigerian exporters that the African Growth and Opportunity Act remains in force despite uncertainty over its expiration timeline.
Chairman of the Trade and Investment Committee of the NACC, Grace Adeyemo, explained that the scheme, which grants duty-free access to over 6,800 products from Sub-Saharan Africa into the United States, had not been terminated as widely speculated.
Speaking at the NACC-NEPC Export Roundtable 2025 held in Lagos on Wednesday, Adeyemo said, “President Trump has not made a declaration on AGOA. AGOA has not ended. AGOA is not a free trade agreement. It is a unilateral preferential trade agreement that does not require reciprocal action.”
She explained that the trade pact, enacted by the U.S. Congress, is still under review, and any decision on its future would require congressional input. According to her, “It is intentional that the U.S. president did not mention AGOA in his last trade proclamation because Congress has to present a position to him. The world is waiting, and the continent is waiting.”
Adeyemo urged Nigerian exporters not to panic, stressing that lobbying was ongoing in Washington to secure an extension beyond September.
She noted, “The U.S. Congress is in favour of extending AGOA. Anybody exporting to the U.S. now can still benefit from it before September ends.”
The Chamber also encouraged Nigerian stakeholders to strengthen their negotiation strategies in anticipation of a possible review of the trade scheme. “Nigeria has to start negotiating behind closed doors so that we can have a fair deal. Every government in the world is already adjusting to the global trade reset under President Trump,” Adeyemo advised.
She urged Nigeria to revive its national AGOA implementation strategy, encouraging the revamping of agencies, including the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Bank of Industry, Bank of Agriculture, and Nigeria Customs Service.
For AGOA to yield maximum benefit, Adeyemo recommended that the government anchor specific products for export competitiveness.
“In countries that succeed under AGOA, the government deploys sovereign funds to support priority export products. South Africa, for example, is known in the U.S. for BMW exports. Others focus on coffee, cocoa, or sesame seeds,” she said.
Adeyemo added that while other regions, such as China, have taken strategic steps to pre-empt AGOA’s expiration by creating alternative trade pacts with Africa, Nigeria should intensify its push for extension and ensure exporters are prepared to take advantage of the opportunities.
She concluded, “We should be optimistic. AGOA has not been terminated. It is still pending in Congress. Let us wait patiently for the U.S. decision while positioning our exporters to benefit more from the scheme.”
