April 29, 2025

As President Trump marks 100 days in office, what’s Africa learning from his tariff hikes?

16 minutes

“I can see that president Trump is trying to play some kind of a chess [game] to put the other nations in the context of a prisoner’s dilemma to say, okay, if I do this, what happens? If I do that, what happens?” - Professor Gowokani Chijere Chirwa, University of Malawi

This week, American president Donald Trump will mark 100 days in office.

His second tenure at the White House has been marred by controversial Executive Orders and heated exchanges with foreign governments.

Some of his decisions, particularly the withdrawal of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), have been devastating to many African countries. These funding cuts left millions of HIV and TB patients in limbo.

But it was his reciprocal tariffs that truly rattled the world. Even smaller countries like Lesotho who were slapped with a 50% hike and Madagascar who received 47%, were not spared. So, today, Africa Daily’s Mpho Lakaje finds out what lessons African governments should be taking from the unexpected import tax hikes.

Guests: Professor Gowokani Chijere Chirwa and Prosper Chitambara

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