{"id":2000106496,"date":"2026-03-25T20:49:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T18:49:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/?p=2000106496"},"modified":"2026-03-26T11:36:51","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T09:36:51","slug":"minister-sebahizi-highlights-impact-of-u-s-tariffs-on-rwandas-trade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/minister-sebahizi-highlights-impact-of-u-s-tariffs-on-rwandas-trade\/","title":{"rendered":"Minister Sebahizi highlights impact of U.S. tariffs on Rwanda\u2019s trade"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

He pointed out that this rate is significantly lower than the 37% tariff Rwanda had already been paying on textile exports, despite arguing that such charges are inconsistent with international trade law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


The minister is among participants of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference in Yaound\u00e9, Cameroon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Wednesday morning, he addressed a joint session organized by the World Bank and the WTO, where he outlined Rwanda\u2019s strategies to boost trade through services, job creation, and inclusive economic growth.
In an interview with IGIHE, Sebahizi noted that the meeting comes at a time when the global trading system faces persistent challenges, particularly related to institutional reforms and the failure of some countries to adhere to established trade rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He emphasized that one of the core principles of international trade is non-discrimination. According to this principle, imported goods should be treated equally regardless of their country of origin. However, recent trends show that some countries are imposing tariffs based on origin, undermining these rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere are fundamental principles guiding international trade law, especially non-discrimination,\u201d he said. \u201cBut we have recently seen countries imposing tariffs depending on where goods come from.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sebahizi added that while preferential trade agreements may allow certain countries to export goods duty-free, countries without such agreements should still be treated according to WTO rules. He stressed the need for a return to proper implementation of these principles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Addressing the U.S. tariffs specifically, the minister noted that although they have had some impact, Rwanda has not suffered significant losses. He explained that the tariffs apply to goods already being exported to the U.S., and that Rwanda had long faced even higher duties on key exports like garments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn reality, Rwanda has not lost much because we were already facing a 37% tariff on clothing exports to the U.S. market,\u201d he said. \u201cNow, under the new measures, Rwanda falls under a 10% tariff category.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added that while the reduction may appear beneficial, the broader issue lies in the inconsistency of applying or adjusting tariffs on goods from developing countries, which itself contradicts international trade norms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sebahizi further stated that, aside from the United States, Rwanda has not encountered other countries imposing trade barriers that violate global trade rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Minister Prudence Sebahizi speaks during the WTO Ministerial Meeting in Yaound\u00e9.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Minister Prudence Sebahizihas dioscussed Rwanda\u2019s trade outlook amid shifting global tariff policies during an interview on the sidelines of the WTO meeting in Yaound\u00e9.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Prudence Sebahizi, has spoken out on the impact of recently imposed United States tariffs on different countries, noting that while the new measures affect Rwanda with 10% on imports, their scale remains relatively moderate compared to previous charges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2000106500,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[151,69],"byline":[174],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000106496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-editors-choice","tag-homehighlights","byline-philbert-girinema"],"bylines":[{"id":174,"name":"Philbert Girinema","slug":"philbert-girinema","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":6}],"contributors":[{"id":174,"name":"Philbert Girinema","slug":"philbert-girinema","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":6}],"featured_image":{"id":2000106500,"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tlf_media__15.jpg-8dd52.jpg","alt":"","caption":"According to Prudence Sebahizi, the newly approved $37 million trade fund will support Rwandan SMEs in meeting global standards and boosting exports.","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":1000,"height":667,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tlf_media__15.jpg-8dd52.jpg","width":150,"height":100},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tlf_media__15.jpg-8dd52.jpg","width":300,"height":200},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tlf_media__15.jpg-8dd52.jpg","width":768,"height":512},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tlf_media__15.jpg-8dd52.jpg","width":1000,"height":667},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tlf_media__15.jpg-8dd52.jpg","width":1000,"height":667}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000106496","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000106496"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000106496\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000106501,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000106496\/revisions\/2000106501"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000106500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000106496"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000106496"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000106496"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000106496"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000106496"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}