Country Information - BNLS Region

ECONOMIC BACKGROUND The BNLS States comprise Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland, all of which form part of the Southern African Customs Union. The remaining member is South Africa, whose relative economic strength and size compared to its Customs Union partners sometimes leads to a distortion of the economic and trade performance when analysing the Southern African region as a whole. Namibia, which borders the Atlantic Ocean, is a sparsely populated country relying heavily on its minerals and fishing industries. Botswana likewise has rich mineral deposits, while Swaziland is a small and land-locked country which relies heavily on its agricultural sector. More recently, its textile sector has grown considerably and has benefited significantly by AGOA's duty-free provisions as well as the related 3rd country fabric sourcing rule. Lesotho, often referred to as the "Mountain Kingdom", is completely landlocked by South Africa. The textile industry is the single largest provider of manufacturing employment, and the country forms the single largest exporter of garments to the U.S. under AGOA. Click here for Country Map [23kB]

BI-LATERAL TRADE OVERVIEW The trade analysis shows that BNLS exports to the United States far outweigh its imports, with a trade balance in favour of the BNLS valued at over US$ 800mn in 2004. With the inception of AGOA late in 2000, BNLS exports have grown from less than US$ 300mn to almost US$ 1bn in 2004. A major contributor to this trade performance is due to the rapid growth of garment exports from Lesotho, which contributed over 70% to total regional exports to the US. Minerals and metals are likewise important export products to the US market, having grown 6-fold between 2002 and 2004. Detailed bilateral trade data for this country, disaggregated by industry sector, can be accessed by following the link below. Aggregate data featuring all AGOA-eligible countries is updated on this website as soon as new data is published, including ranked AGOA / non-AGOA trade, aggregate trade by industry sector as well as the latest apparel trade data. Click here for Detailed Trade Profile