Agoa.info - African Growth and Opportunity Act
TRALAC - Trade Law Centre
You are here: Home/News/Article/Ethiopia takes steps to derive benefits from US-Africa trade pact

Ethiopia takes steps to derive benefits from US-Africa trade pact

Ethiopia takes steps to derive benefits from US-Africa trade pact
Ethiopian coffee warehouse. Coffee is an important export category for trade with the United States

United States - Ethiopia bilateral goods trade

Data in $ '000, Year-to-date is to May 2013, Imports from US perspective

Published date:
Saturday, 27 July 2013
Source:

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), enacted in May 2001, is a signature US trade initiative that provides Sub Saharan African Countries with a most liberal access to the US market. Much progress has been made under the Act over the last thirteen years. Since 2000, exports under AGOA have increased more than 500 percent, from $8.15 billion in 2001 to $53.8 billion in 2011.

Though about 90 percent of these exports have come from the oil and gas sector, non-oil and gas exports have also grown by 275 percent, from $1.2 billion to $4.5 billion in the same period.  However, compared to the potential many agree that much remains to be done to exploit the full potential of AGOA. In many African countries, AGOA exports have been limited to few products.

At every AGOA forum over the last thirteen years, African Ministers of trade have deliberating on how better to utilize the African opportunity.

In particular, over the last three years, there has been a more focused discussion and a decision was made to approach this question in a more strategic manner.  At the 11th AGOA forum in Zambia, African Trade Ministers underscored the need for AGOA eligible African countries to develop their respective National AGOA response strategy. 

And ECA and the African Union Commission provide technical assistance to African countries that wish to undertake this exercise.

Ethiopia is the first pilot country to undertake this strategic initiative and in this regard, the Ethiopian Ministry of Trade, in cooperation with the African Trade Policy Center of the ECA, has developed a National AGOA Response Strategy to identify key supply side constraints that impede the performance of the export sector and suggest possible interventions to help overcome these constraints.

As part of this exercise, the Ministry, in cooperation with ECA held an Ethiopian National AGOA Response Strategy consultative meeting from July 16-17th 2013 at the UN Conference Center. The meeting brought together relevant stakeholders from the private sector, the government and the donor community to provide input for the National AGOA Response strategy.  Close to 200 participants comprised of leading exporters, heads of spectral associations, heads of chambers of commerce, senior government officials from various ministries, commercial diplomats, members of civil society and donors took part in this meeting. The meeting identified sector specific constraints in selected priority areas and the appropriate support programs and policy interventions to overcome them.

In addition to providing valuable input for the National Strategy which is expected to be finalized in few months time, the meeting also agreed on the need to set up a National Institutional Structure that oversees the development and implantation of the Strategy. They meeting agreed on a need to set up a High Level National Steering Committee and Sector and area specific Technical Groups, and a full-fledged AGOA center to oversee the implementation of the National Strategy.

Speaking at the consultative Forum, Mr. Yacob Yala, and Ethiopia's State Minister of Trade said he considers this strategy as an integral part of the country's Growth and Transformation Plan.  He Said, " ..the underlying objective of our GTP strategy is to increase the share and the benefits gained from the global economic integration with an ultimate goal of becoming a middle-income country by 2025.  The US market opportunity opened through AGOA is extremely useful to realize this objective."

He also expressed his government's appreciation for the support provided by the ECA's Africa Trade Policy Centre over the years, as well as the support provided towards the preparation of the National Strategy and the August 2013 AGOA Forum that Ethiopia will be hosting.

Issued by:
ECA External Communications and Media Relations Section
www.uneca.org

Read related news articles

US official reveals Ethiopia’s request for AGOA eligibility ‘still pending’, decision unlikely at upcoming forum

A US State Department official has disclosed that the decision to reinstate Ethiopia’s eligibility for the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) is “still pending”. Constance Hamilton, Assistant US Trade Representative for Africa, made this statement during a digital press briefing held on Thursday.  “Those decisions are still pending,” Ms Hamilton told journalists from the continent, and that “there probably will not be...

27 October 2023

State Secretary Blinken praises Ethiopia on Tigray peace, no return to trade programme yet

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken praised Ethiopia on Wednesday for its progress in implementing a peace deal to end the Tigray conflict, but stopped short of ushering the country back into a U.S. trade programme. Visiting Ethiopia to repair relations that were strained by the two-year war in the northern region, Blinken met with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and discussed ongoing efforts to solidify peace, restore basic services and address...

13 March 2023

Ethiopia asks US to reinstate AGOA trade benefits as US Secretary of State Blinken heads to Addis, Niger

Ethiopia is asking the Joe Biden administration to reinstate its duty-free access to the US market, arguing that “exceptional circumstances” warrant an immediate re-examination of its suspension just as Secretary of State Antony Blinken heads to Addis Ababa to discuss the cessation of hostilities in Tigray. The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) terminated Ethiopia’s participation in the African Growth and Opportunity Act...

09 March 2023

Kenya 'reaps Sh10 billion after Ethiopia's ban from AGOA deal'

Kenya earned an additional Sh10.2 billion from its exports to the US as Nairobi reaped big from Ethiopia’s suspension from a duty-free trade pact. Last year, Kenya’s exports to the US — mostly apparel were valued at Sh59.6 billion, a jump of more than a fifth from Sh49.4 billion in 2020 as Kenyan traders sold more goods through the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), a free trade agreement between Washington and select African...

24 May 2022

US Senator requests return of Ethiopia to AGOA

A U.S senator has requested the senate to return Ethiopia to AGOA as it has been progressing in many aspects. U.S. Senator from Virginia Mark Warner said the U.S. should strengthen and improve the trade relationship between Africa specifically Ethiopia. The Ethiopian government has been pending progress in many aspects, especially the ceasefire. The trade relation between Africa specifically with Ethiopia is important. “We do that...

05 April 2022

In Ethiopia, Guinea and Mali, fears rise over losing duty-free access to US market

For Sammy Abdella, the new year has brought bad tidings: the prospect of a steep drop in sales of scarves, rugs, baskets and other textile goods produced by Sammy Handmade in Ethiopia. “The U.S. market is our main destination,” said Abdella, who estimates it accounts for nearly two-thirds of sales for his Addis Ababa-based home decor and fashion company. “So, losing that put us in a very, you know, bad situation.” The source of...

20 January 2022

US takes Ethiopia, Mali, Guinea off AGOA program

The United States on Saturday cut Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea from access to a duty-free trade program, following through on President Joe Biden's threat to do so over accusations of human rights violations and recent coups. "The United States today terminated Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea from the AGOA trade preference program due to actions taken by each of their governments in violation of the AGOA Statute," the U.S. Trade Representative's...

01 January 2022

Despite a late push, Ethiopia is set to exit the US trade pact

Despite a last-minute drive backed by diaspora members who fear that Washington may lose an ally, Ethiopia is likely to lose important commercial privileges in the United States on January 1 due to human rights concerns. President Joe Biden said on November 2 that Ethiopia, a longtime US ally and the continent’s second most populous country, will be removed from the African Growth and Opportunity Act in the New Year, citing “grave...

30 December 2021

US President terminates AGOA preferences for Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea

U.S. President Joe Biden announced yesterday that he has “determined that Ethiopia, Guinea, and Mali do not meet” the AGOA requirements described in section 506A(a)(1) and has proceeded to “terminate the designation of the three countries as beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries …effective January 1, 2022.” On November 21, the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs lamented the impending decision by the U.S. to remove Ethiopia...

24 December 2021

Senator Van Hollen, Representative Bass urge Biden Administration to reconsider Ethiopia's suspension from AGOA

Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-Calif.) urged President Biden to reconsider his Administration’s November 2, 2021 decision to terminate Ethiopia’s designation as a beneficiary country under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) at the end of this year. As the lawmakers note in their letter (download a copy at the link alongside), this decision will hurt the nation’s most vulnerable...

23 December 2021

US terminates duty-free trade access to Ethiopia over conflict

Ethiopia’s duty-free export access to the U.S. has been revoked by President Joe Biden due to its failure to meet the requirements, according to the White House. The action comes after 13 months of civil war in the country. Ethiopia is disqualified from participation in the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act due to gross violations of human rights, the U.S. Trade Representative said when it notified Ethiopia in November....

23 December 2021

You are here: Home/News/Article/Ethiopia takes steps to derive benefits from US-Africa trade pact