Zero-tariff leap for China-Africa prosperity

IN A FORMAL message to the African Union's 39th Summit, President Xi Jinping announced that the zero-tariff policy, which includes 53 African nations with diplomatic ties with China, will take effect on May 1, 2026.

- GIDEON H CHITANGA

The new policy expands preferential access into the Chinese market initially granted to the least developed countries (LDCs) to include all African countries, providing a concrete, transformative trade framework with fixed implementation timelines.

The zero-tariff access to the second-largest economy and probably the largest market by population opens a window for export-led growth across African economies. The timing of the launch declaration (declaration of 2025) called for the removal of tariffs for African countries.

The zero-tariff policy provides a genuine opportunity that could have a long-term, transformative impact on Africa's growth. It is a major strategic breakthrough in South-South commerce and economic diplomacy, providing reassurance and certainty that the African continent has access to the Chinese market.

The policy positions Africa as a strategic low-cost entry point into the huge Chinese market. Companies that wish to evade high tariffs in other parts of the world can now set shop on the continent as a springboard into China, bringing much-needed foreign direct investment (FDI). The provision of non-tariff access to the world’s second-largest economy is a significantly bold move that reaffirms China's deep solidarity with the African continent and its openness to business amid rising US protectionism and transactional bilateralism.

The US recently confirmed that the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) will be continued following lengthy uncertainty and fears that some African parties to the act may be excluded. AGOA, like European Economic Partnership Agreements, often comes with political or governance conditionalities that smack of intrusive political and economic postcolonial interference and paternalism.