With the clock ticking on the preferential trade pact that has anchored much of its access to the American market, Botswana is mounting a late-stage drive to expand beef exports to the United States under the African Growth and Opportunity Act, or AGOA, which is set to expire in December 2026.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump signed legislation extending the trade program for eligible African nations through December 31, 2026, restoring benefits retroactively to September 30, 2025, when the agreement briefly lapsed. For Botswana, whose textile industry has largely withered after once serving as its principal AGOA export, the extension represents both opportunity and reckoning.
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