African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Linkages (ALINC) programme in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is working with over 16 companies in the agricultural, handicrafts and the garments sectors in Zambia to help them break into the US market.

According to the EBZ Newsletter for August, Zambian and regional firms under the ALINC programme were being assisted with expertise on how to export goods to the US.

The Newsletter said firms were being offered consultancy services by the International Executive Services Corps (IESC) based in the USA on how they could take advantage of the market.

"The ALINC Desk in Washington DC has been recruiting International Executive Service Corps (IESC) experts whose mandate is to provide each select firm with export consulting advice before linking them with US importing firms," the report said.

The report also said the IESC export management teams were working with the ALINC Desk in Washington DC in determining the US market potential for the firms' products to that country.

Besides linking the COMESA and Zambian firms to US importing firms, ALINC also seeks to increase awareness of AGOA among the eligible member states. It would also seek to provide a value-adding component to the current private sector strategies.

Currently ALINC is working with companies like Knock Wood and Nagaunozye in handicrafts, Afrikolor Batiks, Unity Garments and Zambia China Mulungushi in Textiles in the Garments sector.

Under agriculture, the ALINC programme was working with York Farms, TATA Farms and Foods, Cheetah Lodge and Galaunia Farms among others.

Latest AGOA Trade Data currently available on AGOA.info


Click here to view a sector profile of Zambia’s bilateral trade with the United States, disaggregated by total exports and imports, AGOA exports and GSP exports.

Other regularly updated trade statistics on AGOA.info include: (click each link to view)