While Washington and Beijing square off in the latest round of economic brinkmanship, and Europe reassesses its alliances under pressure from U.S. tariffs, Africa is caught—once again—on the wrong end of a global economic storm. We didn’t start this trade war. We’re not even players in it. But we’re going to feel it deeply.
Earlier this month, the United States dropped what it’s calling the “Liberation Day” tariffs: sweeping import taxes targeting China and most of the world. China quickly hit back, raising tariffs on U.S. goods to as high as 125%. Europe is inching toward retaliation. The rhetoric is hardline, the markets are rattled, and the world is bracing for a long, messy economic brawl.
But where does that leave Africa? Truth is, we’re nowhere near the negotiating tables—yet we’re among the most exposed.
Africa’s economy is shaped by consumption, not production. Most of what we use, wear, eat, or build with comes from abroad. Our industries are underdeveloped. Our supply chains are externally anchored. And our currencies? They live or die by the mood swings of the U.S. dollar
So when superpowers weaponize trade, Africa pays the price—not at the policy level, but at the market stall, at the fuel pump, in the pharmacies, in the cost of basic infrastructure. The invisible tax of global tension shows up in our daily lives. And if we don’t start changing the structure of our economies, it’ll keep happening.
The impact is both direct and indirect. On one hand, tariffs increase the cost of goods Africa imports—from machinery to consumer electronics to essential medical equipment. On the other, they rattle currency markets. The dollar gets stronger in moments of global instability, and African currencies—already fragile—sink further. That means we pay more for everything priced in dollars. Fuel. Food. Medicine. Transport. Construction materials. The essentials.
At a national level, this worsens debt pressure. Many African countries owe money in dollars. So a stronger dollar doesn’t just mean pricier imports; it means ballooning debt payments, strained public budgets, and more borrowing to stay afloat. That’s a vicious cycle. And it’s not theory—it’s happening now. Countries are being forced into austerity, and social spending is being slashed.
Trade disruptions also hit the few industries we do have. A factory in Nigeria that assembles solar panels might rely on Chinese components. If those components are now caught in the crossfire of tariffs or slowed by supply chain delays, production halts. Jobs are lost. Local momentum is killed. The dream of “Made in Africa” takes another hit.
And let’s not forget about food. A continent with the land and labor to feed itself still imports over $40 billion in food annually. As global supply chains tighten and inflation rises, food becomes more expensive—and sometimes, scarce. The poorest suffer first and hardest.
All of this paints a clear picture: Africa can no longer afford to remain an observer of the global economy. We need to produce more of what we consume. We need to trade more with each other instead of constantly looking outwards. We need to reduce our dependency on the dollar, strengthen our currencies, and build local value chains that are resilient to shocks abroad.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is a start—but it can’t be symbolic. If countries keep protecting their markets while preaching unity, it’ll go nowhere. Real political will, infrastructure investment, and logistical coordination are needed to make regional trade viable. We also need policies that support local manufacturing and agriculture, not undercut them with cheap imports that destroy local capacity.
The current trade war is a warning shot. If the world gets more divided—if countries turn inward and deglobalization continues—Africa will be left to fend for itself in a system it didn’t design. That’s a risk we cannot keep taking.
The good news? Africa is not powerless. We have the population, the resources, the youth, and the need. What we lack is coordination and urgency. But the writing is on the wall: nobody is coming to save us from global volatility. The only way out is forward—on our own terms.
This trade war isn’t just between the U.S. and China. It’s between a system that leaves Africa reactive and dependent—and a future where we are active, producing, exporting, and standing on firmer economic ground.
It’s time we stop being collateral damage in other people’s power plays. It’s time Africa starts building its own muscle—industrial, financial, and political. The world won’t wait for us to catch up. We have to decide to move.