Latest news with #Shelile
Eyewitness News
04-08-2025
- Business
- Eyewitness News
Lesotho aims for 10% tariff on exports to US
The Lesotho government has committed to continue with negotiations to further reduce tariffs on its exports to the US. This comes after the United States revised its crippling 50% tariff on all Lesotho exports down to 15%, effective from 7 August. 'While we had negotiated the revision to at least 10% which was applied to all countries, this rate [15%] will ease the burden to our exporters, particularly the textile and apparel industry,' said Minister of Trade, Industry and Business Development Mokhethi Shelile at a press briefing on Friday in Maseru. The textile industry was among the hardest hit after the US announced sweeping tariff increases in April under its America First Trade Policy.' The US had temporarily reduced the tariff to 10% for a 90-day negotiation period that ended 31 July. Shelile said during this time Lesotho had made a multi-pronged effort that included direct talks with the US Embassy in Maseru, lobbyists in the US who highlighted how increased tariffs would lead to higher prices for American consumers, and a final push led by Minister of Finance Dr Retselisitsoe Matlanyane and the Lesotho' Embassy in Washington DC. 'We are still committed to continuing negotiations so that our exports can enjoy the minimum tariffs that the US applies,' Shelile said. Until April, Lesotho had enjoyed duty-free and quota-free access to US markets through the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). That preferential agreement helped Lesotho's textile sector grow to employ thousands of people. 'The US remains one of our main trading partners … and this relationship needs continuous nurturing,' the minister said. A new SADC-USA Dialogue Forum is expected to be launched at the SADC Summit in Madagascar which runs until 18 August. This article first appeared on GroundUp. Read the original here.
Canada News.Net
03-08-2025
- Business
- Canada News.Net
Interview: Lesotho trade minister calls U.S. tariffs unfair to developing countries
Classified by the United Nations as one of the world's least developed countries, Lesotho is one of Africa's largest garment exporters to the United States. by Xinhua writer Bai Ge, Yan Ran MASERU, Lesotho, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. tariff regime is unfair to developing countries such as Lesotho, and has dealt a heavy blow to the country's textile industry, a senior official from the landlocked nation in southern Africa has said. Services such as Microsoft licenses, for which Lesotho pays millions of dollars annually, have been overlooked by Washington, said Mokhethi Shelile, Lesotho's minister of trade, industry, business development and tourism. He also highlighted that some U.S. goods enter Lesotho via South Africa and are mistakenly omitted from its import figures. The U.S. tariff policies, centered on the export and import of goods, has been criticized for overlooking U.S. services exported to the rest of the world. The U.S. economy is predominantly services-based. Classified by the United Nations as one of the world's least developed countries, Lesotho is one of Africa's largest garment exporters to the United States. Its textile industry remains a key pillar of its economy and a major source of formal employment, providing around 40,000 jobs, according to the International Organization of Employers. Shelile cautioned that the layoffs caused by U.S. tariffs could have a ripple effect on sectors such as transportation and real estate, potentially undermining social stability. Last month, Lesotho declared a national state of disaster over its "high rates of youth unemployment and job losses" triggered by the U.S. tariff hike. The country is grappling with poverty and high unemployment, as the youth jobless rate rises to 48 percent, local media reported. Shelile said the U.S. unilateral imposition of discriminatory tariffs "disrupts global supply chains and forces African nations to negotiate as blocs." According to the minister, Lesotho is actively working to diversify its markets by deepening ties with South Africa, tapping into the African Continental Free Trade Area, and pursuing trade and investment partnerships with China, Nigeria, the European Union and other economies. Shelile revealed that Lesotho had formally requested a waiver or reduction of the U.S. tariffs. He added that since Washington insists on negotiating with sub-Saharan African countries except South Africa as a single bloc, talks can only proceed indirectly at this stage. "We are making every effort to safeguard our national interests, but the outlook of the upcoming tariff policy remains uncertain," he said. Shelile added that "through export diversification and deeper regional trade and investment cooperation, we are confident that by this time next year, we will have overcome current challenges and put the economy back on a path to recovery and renewed growth."
Mint
01-08-2025
- Business
- Mint
In a country Trump says nobody's heard of, tariffs bring chaos
MASERU, Lesotho—President Trump promised Africa that trade would replace aid when he dismantled America's foreign-assistance programs soon after taking office this year. But here in one of the world's poorest countries, his administration is slashing both. Trump, who publicly disparaged Lesotho as a place 'nobody has ever heard of," has threatened the tiny southern African country with 50% tariffs, among the highest rates proposed for any single nation or territory. Lesotho's garment exporters are already closing up shop in the face of dwindling orders, while other countries with more diplomatic resources rush to secure new trade deals with the White House. Lesotho's government declared a state of disaster in July as Trump's looming tariffs devastated the country's textile industry. The landlocked nation of 2.3 million people has prospered under a 25-year-old American trade program that granted duty-free access to the U.S. market to dozens of African countries. 'We took advantage of the trade concessions, being a small country," Mokhethi Shelile, Lesotho's trade minister, told The Wall Street Journal. 'I did not expect for that to be a reason to be punished." The garment industry is the largest private employer in Lesotho, which has an annual gross domestic product of just $2.3 billion. The U.S. accounts for nearly 20% of Lesotho's overseas sales, including clothing from brands such as Levi's and Reebok, and stores such as Walmart. Although the 50% tariffs are on pause, orders have dried up, production lines have shut down and workers have been sent home. Garment workers on the job at Afri-Expo Textiles in Maseru, is home to several textile companies. The recent spate of layoffs has made the local population anxious. The White House and the U.S. Trade Representative's office didn't respond Thursday to requests for comment. The disaster declaration has allowed the government to quickly reroute funds to programs aimed at youth unemployment and economic stimulus, including the waiving of fees to register companies and the creation of a fund to support new businesses, said Shelile. By imposing tariffs, Trump appears to be sidestepping the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which allows 32 African countries to sell some 1,800 products in the U.S. duty-free. The law expires this year, and, with Trump wielding tariffs as the foundation of his international economic policies, most experts don't expect the Republican-controlled Congress to renew it. Shelile says a lobbying group that purported to have access to prominent members of Trump's family asked in a virtual meeting for $1.5 million to campaign for tariff relief. He didn't identify the lobbyists. 'They wanted the money immediately, and they didn't want to guarantee results," Shelile said. Lesotho declined the offer, he said. Shelile said he is in talks with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, pushing for lower tariffs. Ever Successful Textile, a Chinese-owned factory in Maseru, Lesotho's capital, employed 650 people before the tariffs were announced, with 80% to 90% of its orders destined for the U.S. By the end of July, Ever Successful's payroll had plunged to 90 workers, who were finishing up one final order—black exercise pants for the American market. Lesotho's winter was in full swing, and the workers, most of them women, huddled in a corner of the cavernous factory in hats and coats, some wrapped in blankets. 'Normally, it's too hot in here," said Malefetsane Phahla, the human-resources manager. 'When we're done with this order, it means we're going home," because the company operates on a 'no work, no pay" basis, he said. This week, Lieketseng Billy, 44, and a few dozen other women waited outside the Quantum Apparel factory in Maseru, hoping for work. In June, Billy was laid off from her sewing job at Ever Successful. Now, she is struggling to make ends meet. 'It's been very difficult," she said. 'I didn't save anything when I was working; we earn just a little sum of money." Textile factories typically pay minimum wage, which rose to the equivalent of about $168 a month earlier this year. Billy, a single mother who has been working in Maseru's textile factories since 2001, is absorbing a double-blow of tariff threats and aid cuts. She's HIV-positive, and for years she has received six months' worth of antiretroviral medication at a time from a U.S.-supported clinic. But when she went to pick up her medication in early June, she was given just a three-month supply. 'They told me when I come back, I should expect to maybe get a month's medication or even weeks," she said. 'The situation is really bad at home," Billy said. 'We don't have food. Next week, my daughter is going back to school and we need to pay school fees for the third quarter. I don't know where the money is going to come from." In Lesotho's mountainous rural areas, children sometimes attend school in community churches, which are the largest indoor spaces available in many villages. Different grades sit in different corners, facing different directions, trying to listen to their respective teachers. In other communities, children attend class under the open skies, with lessons often cut short by rain or cold. American-funded school buildings with roofs, classrooms and bathrooms were at various stages of construction when Trump gutted U.S. aid programs funding the work. For the past two years, students ranging from age 6 to 15 at the Khama-Khamane Primary School in Qabane have taken their classes in a small stone church hall left roofless by a storm. In September 2024, the U.S. Embassy in Maseru said it would pay for a new schoolhouse in Qabane, but had only disbursed about half of the pledged $9,000 before Trump ended the funding, said Cheletsi Lefa, the school's principal. The school's 47 pupils continue to attend classes in the roofless church hall while Lefa searches for funding to finish the new building. 'We are going to every corner we can reach to get funding," he said. 'We are leaving no stone unturned." A program run through the U.S. Embassy promised to pay for a new schoolhouse for the Khama-Khamane Primary School, but it had only disbursed about half of the pledged $9,000 before Trump ended the workers on their lunch break outside the Chinese-owned Ever Successful factory. Outside of textile factories in Maseru, the newly unemployed are increasingly anxious. Mamotipi Masitha, 31, has been working in Maseru's textile factories since 2015. Her job supported herself, her husband—a driver who is currently unemployed—two young children and her sick mother. But she wasn't able to save anything on her minimum-wage pay, and in June, she was laid off along with the rest of her factory's workers due to the tariffs. 'I don't know how I'm going to be able to take care of my mother and kids," she said outside a still-operational textile factory, along with hundreds of other women seeking work. 'I live on handouts from people to help us eat every day," she said. 'I would love to ask Trump, please lower the tariffs so we can get our jobs back. We have families to take care of."
Hindustan Times
01-08-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
In a Country Trump Says Nobody's Heard Of, Tariffs Bring Chaos
MASERU, Lesotho—President Trump promised Africa that trade would replace aid when he dismantled America's foreign-assistance programs soon after taking office this year. But here in one of the world's poorest countries , his administration is slashing both. Trump, who publicly disparaged Lesotho as a place 'nobody has ever heard of,' has threatened the tiny southern African country with 50% tariffs, among the highest rates proposed for any single nation or territory. Lesotho's garment exporters are already closing up shop in the face of dwindling orders, while other countries with more diplomatic resources rush to secure new trade deals with the White House. Lesotho's government declared a state of disaster in July as Trump's looming tariffs devastated the country's textile industry. The landlocked nation of 2.3 million people has prospered under a 25-year-old American trade program that granted duty-free access to the U.S. market to dozens of African countries. 'We took advantage of the trade concessions, being a small country,' Mokhethi Shelile, Lesotho's trade minister, told The Wall Street Journal. 'I did not expect for that to be a reason to be punished.' The garment industry is the largest private employer in Lesotho, which has an annual gross domestic product of just $2.3 billion. The U.S. accounts for nearly 20% of Lesotho's overseas sales, including clothing from brands such as Levi's and Reebok, and stores such as Walmart. Although the 50% tariffs are on pause, orders have dried up, production lines have shut down and workers have been sent home. The White House and the U.S. Trade Representative's office didn't respond Thursday to requests for comment. The disaster declaration has allowed the government to quickly reroute funds to programs aimed at youth unemployment and economic stimulus, including the waiving of fees to register companies and the creation of a fund to support new businesses, said Shelile. By imposing tariffs, Trump appears to be sidestepping the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which allows 32 African countries to sell some 1,800 products in the U.S. duty-free. The law expires this year, and, with Trump wielding tariffs as the foundation of his international economic policies, most experts don't expect the Republican-controlled Congress to renew it. Shelile says a lobbying group that purported to have access to prominent members of Trump's family asked in a virtual meeting for $1.5 million to campaign for tariff relief. He didn't identify the lobbyists. 'They wanted the money immediately, and they didn't want to guarantee results,' Shelile said. Lesotho declined the offer, he said. Shelile said he is in talks with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, pushing for lower tariffs. Ever Successful Textile, a Chinese-owned factory in Maseru, Lesotho's capital, employed 650 people before the tariffs were announced, with 80% to 90% of its orders destined for the U.S. By the end of July, Ever Successful's payroll had plunged to 90 workers, who were finishing up one final order—black exercise pants for the American market. Lesotho's winter was in full swing, and the workers, most of them women, huddled in a corner of the cavernous factory in hats and coats, some wrapped in blankets. 'Normally, it's too hot in here,' said Malefetsane Phahla, the human-resources manager. 'When we're done with this order, it means we're going home,' because the company operates on a 'no work, no pay' basis, he said. This week, Lieketseng Billy, 44, and a few dozen other women waited outside the Quantum Apparel factory in Maseru, hoping for work. In June, Billy was laid off from her sewing job at Ever Successful. Now, she is struggling to make ends meet. 'It's been very difficult,' she said. 'I didn't save anything when I was working; we earn just a little sum of money.' Textile factories typically pay minimum wage, which rose to the equivalent of about $168 a month earlier this year. Billy, a single mother who has been working in Maseru's textile factories since 2001, is absorbing a double-blow of tariff threats and aid cuts. She's HIV-positive, and for years she has received six months' worth of antiretroviral medication at a time from a U.S.-supported clinic. But when she went to pick up her medication in early June, she was given just a three-month supply. 'They told me when I come back, I should expect to maybe get a month's medication or even weeks,' she said. 'The situation is really bad at home,' Billy said. 'We don't have food. Next week, my daughter is going back to school and we need to pay school fees for the third quarter. I don't know where the money is going to come from.' In Lesotho's mountainous rural areas, children sometimes attend school in community churches, which are the largest indoor spaces available in many villages. Different grades sit in different corners, facing different directions, trying to listen to their respective teachers. In other communities, children attend class under the open skies, with lessons often cut short by rain or cold. American-funded school buildings with roofs, classrooms and bathrooms were at various stages of construction when Trump gutted U.S. aid programs funding the work. For the past two years, students ranging from age 6 to 15 at the Khama-Khamane Primary School in Qabane have taken their classes in a small stone church hall left roofless by a storm. In September 2024, the U.S. Embassy in Maseru said it would pay for a new schoolhouse in Qabane, but had only disbursed about half of the pledged $9,000 before Trump ended the funding, said Cheletsi Lefa, the school's principal. The school's 47 pupils continue to attend classes in the roofless church hall while Lefa searches for funding to finish the new building. 'We are going to every corner we can reach to get funding,' he said. 'We are leaving no stone unturned.' A program run through the U.S. Embassy promised to pay for a new schoolhouse for the Khama-Khamane Primary School, but it had only disbursed about half of the pledged $9,000 before Trump ended the workers on their lunch break outside the Chinese-owned Ever Successful factory. Outside of textile factories in Maseru, the newly unemployed are increasingly anxious. Mamotipi Masitha, 31, has been working in Maseru's textile factories since 2015. Her job supported herself, her husband—a driver who is currently unemployed—two young children and her sick mother. But she wasn't able to save anything on her minimum-wage pay, and in June, she was laid off along with the rest of her factory's workers due to the tariffs. 'I don't know how I'm going to be able to take care of my mother and kids,' she said outside a still-operational textile factory, along with hundreds of other women seeking work. 'I live on handouts from people to help us eat every day,' she said. 'I would love to ask Trump, please lower the tariffs so we can get our jobs back. We have families to take care of.' Write to Alexandra Wexler at In a Country Trump Says Nobody's Heard Of, Tariffs Bring Chaos Mokhethi Shelile, Lesotho's trade minister. In a Country Trump Says Nobody's Heard Of, Tariffs Bring Chaos
Fashion Network
30-06-2025
- Business
- Fashion Network
US tariff pause brings little cheer to Lesotho's textile industry
A temporary pause on US tariffs has brought little relief to Lesotho's textile industry, which has suffered layoffs and shuttered factories after orders from America dried up. 'It's very, very dire,' Lesotho's Trade Minister Mokhethi Shelile, said in an interview Monday. 'US buyers are not placing orders because they don't understand what is going to happen and there is still no clarity from the USTR,' Shelile said, referring to the Office of the US Trade Representative. US President Donald Trump slapped 50% tariffs on Lesotho in early April — the highest in the world — when he unveiled sweeping reciprocal levies on trading partners. These were subsequently delayed until July 9 and could now be reimposed on nations who have not negotiated new deals. The southern African mountain kingdom's biggest industry is textiles and the US is its largest export market. It employs 12,000 people and supports 40,000 indirect jobs, selling clothes to US retailers such as Walmart Inc. and JCPenney. Last year exports from to the US totaled $237.3 million — about 11% of the nation's $2.12 billion gross domestic product — while American imports from the country stood at $2.8 million, according to the USTR. Lesotho has held talks with the US to reduce the tariff, according to Shelile. 'We submitted our second tariff offer that addressed issues which they wanted us to address specifically,' he added. 'We are waiting to be informed.' The USTR didn't immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. Maseru E-Textile Ltd. is one of the factories that's been impacted by reduced orders. About 90% or 1,000 workers are at home, said human resources manager Sebinane Maretlane. They face an uncertain future if no progress is made in trade negotiations between Washington and Maseru, he said. 'We are waiting to hear from government on what is the outcome of the meetings.' At least three other factories have also scaled back operations and furloughed workers, according to Tsepang Makakole, the general secretary of National Clothing Textile and Allied Workers Union, which has 2,000 members. 'Workers are now being sent home and told the layoffs are for three months,' said Makakole. Sign up here for the twice-weekly Next Apple, Spotify or anywhere you listen.
