U.S. reinstates Mauritania into AGOA after four-year hiatus

US President Joe Biden announced the eligibility of Mauritania for benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which affects market access, investment, and reduced or eliminated tariffs on U.S. imports, four years after his predecessor Donald Trump suspended the Western African country over its failure to make progress on human rights – namely, slavery.

The US embassy in Nouakchott announced the decision on its website adding that the return of the program will open new doors to further economic and commercial growth between Mauritania and the USA.

The return to the program will be effective from January 1st 2024.

Former President Trump in 2019 removed the country from the AGOA arguing that authorities failed to protect workers, as required under a key AGOA provision. “In particular, Mauritania has made insufficient progress toward combating forced labor, specifically, the scourge of hereditary slavery”, Trump said.

“Despite intensive engagement with the United States, the Government of Mauritania has failed to meet critical required benchmarks to address these issues to date”, explained the Trump’s Administration.

American labor leaders in 2018 warned that conditions in Mauritania should disqualify the nation from participating in AGOA. The leaders and US anti-slavery activists had accused the Mauritania of arresting anti-slavery activists.