New agreement expands zero-tariff treatment to cover 53 African countries
China has expanded its zero-tariff treatment to cover all 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic ties, creating new opportunities for Africa to boost exports and industrialisation amid the global headwinds of protectionism.
Reports from China have said 24 tonnes of apples from South Africa cleared customs in south China’s Shenzhen, becoming the first batch of African goods to benefit from the expanded zero-tariff policy.
China has already scrapped tariffs on 100 per cent of tariff lines for 33 least developed countries (LDCs) in Africa since 1 December, 2024.
Under the new arrangement, zero tariffs will apply to the 20 African non-LDCs including Kenya, Egypt and Nigeria in the form of a preferential tariff rate for two years. During this period, China will continue to promote the signing of the China-Africa Economic Partnership for Shared Development agreement with relevant African countries which officials have said will fix zero tariffs as a long-term institutional arrangement.
China’s commerce ministry said in a statement that the zero-tariff policy will lend a competitive edge to African products such as cocoa from Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana, coffee and avocados from Kenya, and citrus fruits and wine from South Africa, which previously faced tariffs ranging from 8 per cent to 30 per cent.
South African sources say the expanded access represents significant progress that, given all the current economic uncertainty and disruption caused by the conflict in the Middle East, is worth pausing for and celebrating.
Boitshoko Ntshabele, CEO of the South African Citrus Growers’ Association (CGA), commented on Friday that processes were unfolding between the Chinese and South African governments as well as their related agencies to make this historic moment a reality.
“On the 28th of April 2026, General Administration of Customs of China circulated a notice which outlines the mechanism for implementing the zero-tariff offer. Based on this notice, the South African Revenue Service will be able to adjust its systems to align with the required Certificate of Origin processes. This tariff reduction is, of course, a unilateral offer by China rather than a formal trade agreement,” he noted.
He said South Africa should continue to prioritise the conclusion of a rules-based trade agreement, drawing on lessons learned from the US’s African Growth and Opportunity Act.
“We were all on tenterhooks until the US administration extended AGOA for a one-year period ending December 2026. While we are deeply grateful for the Chinese government’s gesture and zero-tariff offer within the proposed two year interim period, it is important to point out that the South African government shouldn’t use the entire two years to conclude a bilateral trade agreement with China, but should rather work to expeditiously have an agreement in place before the offer expires. We of course have a firm appreciation of the complexities involved in these processes,” he noted.
