THE United States has imposed trade sanctions against Swaziland after months of haggling about industrial relations concerns, say the small southern African kingdom’s two main business organisations. The Federation of Swaziland Employers and the Swaziland Chamber of Commerce and Industry warned in a joint statement that the country’s strategic industries would be the worst hit by the sanctions. “We have been reliably informed that Swaziland has now finally lost its GSP (Generalised System of Preferences) status and access to the benefits under the African Growth And Opportunity Act,” they said. Both the US embassy in Mbabane and the government declined to comment on the statement. Under the GSP, developing countries can export a range of products to the United states at reduced tariffs. The US government warned in June that it would expel Swaziland from the GSP unless the government passed a new Industrial Relations Act that was acceptable to the International Labour Organisation (ILO). – African Eye News Service
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