Lesotho tried to gather a delegation on Friday to go to Washington to get involved with the United States in terms of tariffs, which risk erasing almost half of the export, said the minister of trade, which could be the blow of death for his economy.
The 50 percent mutual trading tariff for a small South African mountain kingdom was the highest fee on the list of US President Donald Trump.
“The last direction of the policy undertaken by the United States is shocking,” said on Friday the minister of trade Mokhethi Shelile, adding that 45 percent of its exports went to the United States.
He said that officials had already engaged the US embassy “to clarify and how Lesotho was included in the list … such high mutual tariffs.”
On Wednesday, Trump hit the global trading partners with tariffs in America, increasing the decades of trade based on principles that, according to activists, have long been extremely beneficial to rich countries, such as the United States. The White House did not, however, determine the justification of a specific tariff indicator theories of how the rates were calculated appeared.
According to the World Bank, surrounded by the Republic of South Africa, the kingdom of two million people is one of the poorest countries in the world, from GDP to a resident in the amount of USD 916 in 2023.
Lesotho exports to the United States, mainly textiles for popular brands, such as Levi jeans, as well as diamonds, constituted over one tenth GDP of this country.
“The 50 % mutual tariff introduced by the US government will kill the textile and clothing sector in Lesotho,” he told Reuters an independent economic analytics from Maser.
According to government data, American exports to Lesotho in 2024 amounted to $ 2.8 million. The import of American goods from Lesotho in 2024 was USD 237.3 million, compared to 2023, But less than in the last yearswhen the number floated close or above $ 300 million.
According to the economic complexion observatory, vans, vaccines and food preparation machines were the majority of American exports to Lesotho in 2023.
Previous pain with USAID cuts
Oxford Economics said that the textile sector, with about 40,000 employees, was the largest private employer of Lesotho and accounted for about 90 percent of employment and export of production.
“Then you have food sellers. And then you have owners of residential property who rent houses for employees. This means that if the factories are closed, the industry will die and there will be multiply effects,” said Qhesi.
Mutual tariffs of US President Donald Trump were described as “meticulously planned”, but the goals of the Lesotho African nation are taken among the goals, a house on the island for the American air base and the islands of Australia Island and McDonald Islands – where the majority of residents are Pegiina.
Shelile, the minister, said Lesotho was gathering a high -level delegation to the United States. He said that in the medium period the kingdom would “increase efforts to export to alternative markets such as the European Union and Africa Free Continental Trade.”
Earlier, this was affected by the change in the philosophy of Trump's administration from previous administrations in relation to foreign assistance.
His foreign minister said Reuters last month that the country that has one of the highest HIV/AIDS infections in the world has already felt the influence of the United States Agency for international development (USAID), because its health sector was dependent on them.
Trump, in a speech to Congress last month, condemned a part of the help that was previously intended for lesotho, characterized as “African nation”, which “no one has ever heard” about “. The laughter of republican legislators could be heard in the House of Representatives after his commentary.