The Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry says Ghana has secured a major reprieve in its trade relationship with the United States after Washington extended the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) for one year.
In a statement, the sector Minister, Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, welcomed the decision, describing it as a timely intervention that will protect jobs and stabilise confidence in Ghana’s export sector amid heightened tariff pressures.
According to the Minister, the extension signed by the Donald Trump administration on Tuesday, February 3, 2026 will “safeguard thousands of Ghanaian jobs,” particularly in garments, agro-processing, cocoa derivatives and light manufacturing, while strengthening Ghana’s standing as “a reliable trading partner in the U.S market.”
The Ministry’s statement frames the extension as the outcome of sustained engagement between the Mahama administration and U.S. authorities, following a wave of tariff measures that threatened to disrupt trade flows and weaken investment certainty.
“It would be recalled that since the imposition of the 10% universal tariff, the Government of His Excellency John Dramani Mahama – through the Minister- engaged the US counterparts through both diplomatic and direct engagement to mitigate the impact on Ghanaian businesses,” the statement said.
The Trade Ministry also said the Minister held “a series of meetings including stakeholder engagements” to assure exporters of the government’s determination to prevent trade disruptions and protect investment decisions.
The U.S. tariff measures referenced in the statement date back to April 2025, when the United States announced the imposition of a “10% universal tariff,” effective April 5, 2025, covering imports from all countries, including Ghana.
The pressure intensified months later. The Ministry said that on August 7, 2025, the U.S. imposed a new “15% tariff on Ghanaian exports,” as part of a wider trade policy aimed at addressing trade deficits and promoting reciprocal trade practices.
The Trade Ministry’s press release suggests that the one-year AGOA extension provides Ghana with breathing room, especially for exporters whose products rely heavily on preferential access to the U.S. market.
AGOA, enacted in 2000, has long served as a central framework for U.S.-Africa trade. The Ministry described it as “a cornerstone of US-Africa trade,” offering duty-free access to the American market for 32 eligible African countries as of the end of 2024.
For Ghana, the agreement remains a key channel for exporting value-added products. The Ministry said “most of the Ghanaian exports to the US market enjoy the duty-free quota-free market access through the AGOA,” describing it as “a non-reciprocal preferential trade agreement between the USA and eligible African countries, including Ghana.”
Beyond the economic impact, the Trade Ministry also presented the extension as a product of regional and multilateral coordination.
The Minister commended the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the World Trade Organisation (WTO), and other West African countries for what she described as “their collective effort and unwavering support to attain this feat.”
The Minister also acknowledged exporters’ role, praised their resilience during a difficult period, and urged them to seize the opportunity created by the extension.
She “further appreciates the exporters for their resilience over the period and encourages them to leverage the Accelerated Export Development Programme to boost Ghana’s exports to the US market.”
The Ministry’s message to exporters is clear: the extension may be temporary, but it offers a strategic window for Ghana to consolidate its market position, expand export volumes, and strengthen value chains in sectors that remain heavily dependent on AGOA’s duty-free access.
For the government, the statement signals an effort to reassure businesses that diplomatic engagement can still deliver tangible economic results, even amid a tightening global trade environment.
