Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s return to the White House has cast uncertainty over trade negotiations between Kenya and the United States revived under President Joe Biden. In 2021, the Biden administration established a strategic trade and investment partnership with Kenya, but it is unclear whether Trump will continue with the framework set by the Biden administration or cancel it altogether.
In addition, the president-elect declared immigration would be one of his top priorities as he campaigned, pledging to bring “unprecedented order” to the southern border and deport millions of undocumented immigrants on day one of his administration.
In a Daily Maverick webinar, a panel of experts examined what happened, why it happened, and what it might mean for the U.S., South Africa, and the world in the wake of Trump’s re-election. Xolela Mangcu, a sociology professor at George Washington University, said Trump’s election victory offers African countries, particularly South Africa, a chance and an incentive to adjust diplomatic and economic strategies to navigate the changing American foreign policy landscape. The Guardian’s Washington bureau chief, David Smith, said more effort would be devoted to oil exploration and production, which would have disastrous implications for the global environment.
At 78 years old, Trump will be the oldest president and the first convicted felon elected to high office in US history.
