US President
Donald Trump
speaks during a
press
conference
/FILE
UNITED States President Donald
Trump has protested Kenya’s move
to impose a 50 per cent tariff on corn
imports, spotlighting it among the
top 10 unfair trade practices.
In a lengthy post on X, the US Department of Trade said the high tariff
and other burdensome regulatory
requirements effectively blocked US
corn exports to Kenya despite the
market’s budding potential.
“Kenya imposes a 50 percent tariff
on imports of US corn, and imposes
burdensome regulatory requirements,
effectively blocking exports of corn,”
the Department stated.
According to the US, Kenya’s
market for feed corn is currently estimated at $50 million (Sh6.4 billion),
with a potential to grow by 30 per
cent by 2027.
To that effect, Trump
warned of impending consequences
for Kenya over its trade barriers.
In
line with his “America First” policy, Trump signaled an impending retaliation in a bid to protect the American
market from what he has termed as
“exploitation of America.”
“Securing market access for American farmers will ensure they can
compete on a level playing field,” he
expressed.
The tariff imposed by Kenya
applies to countries outside the East
African Community (EAC) and the
Common Market for Eastern and
Southern Africa (COMESA), including the United States.
The move is aimed at shielding
Kenyan farmers from international
competition, ensuring they receive
fair prices for their produce and
promoting self-sufficiency in maize
production.
The tariffs are part of existing
EAC law on trade (Customs Union’s
Common External Tariff (CET), and
little can be done to change it.
However, when deemed necessary,
the Kenyan government has temporarily waived agricultural tariffs to
stabilise prices when domestic agricultural prices exceed certain levels.
The US’s protest letter is coming
just days after Trump announced
sweeping tariffs on goods imported
from the rest of the world.
He indicated that a 10 per cent
tariff on all nations and much
higher rates of up to 50 per cent on
individual countries would boost
the US economy and protect jobs.
He slapped 10 per cent tariff on all
goods coming from Kenya.
His warning of a more punishable
tax regime is likely to further hurt
$784 million (Sh109.7 billion) trade
between the two nations, with at
least 6,400 products from Kenya that
have been enjoying free entry under
the African Growth and Opportunity
Act (AGOA) in the past 25 years.
The
deal comes to an end in September
this year.