The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have called on African economies to seek alternative markets for their products saying the outcomes of the ongoing Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Summit must re-affirm African countries’ sovereignty on political, economic and social decisions “and must never be a platform to make African countries puppets of American imperialism”.

The EFF also called on the African continent to consolidate common perspectives aimed at common prosperity, and reject, what it called, the USA’s strategy of divide and rule, by excluding certain African countries from AGOA for their own sovereign political and economic decisions.

“The EFF condemns and rejects the United States of America's (US) use of AGOA as nothing but an instrument of imperialist control to micromanage African countries,” the party said.

“African countries have thus far succumbed to this bullying strategy, which has seen South Africa and other African economies import cheap and potentially harmful agricultural products such as pork, beef, and poultry products from the US,” it said.

“The EFF has consistently warned South Africa and African countries to stand against the US bullying them into unethical and unfair trade relations.”

It said that relying on other countries for food posed a significant risk for political and national security and encouraged South Africa and African countries to decisively start subsidising their agricultural sectors to grow the agrarian economy, saying it was one sector that would have an immediate impact on jobs and food security.

“The EFF calls on African countries to reject the political conditionality and foreign policy manipulation that comes with AGOA. It is time for African countries to stop sacrificing principles on the altar of trade convenience,” the party said.

kailene.pillay@inl.co.za

IOL

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