Much of island’s economic success was built on textiles but rising labour costs underline need for high-tech products.Next to the motorway, heading north from Mauritius’ international airport, is a row of boxy apartment blocks festooned with washing hung out to dry. These are the cramped dormitories of thousands of foreign textile workers, the majority from Bangladesh. The hostels, which also house workers from Madagascar and Nepal,...

01 April 2022

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) offers a duty-free access to the largest market in the world. Although it has the potential to be a major driving force in African development, the AGOA has been under utilised. With the renewal of AGOA up to 2025, it is high time to maximise its potential for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME). This statement was made yesterday by the Minister of Business, Enterprise and Cooperatives, Mr S....

06 April 2017

The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), Board Chair, Mr. Paul Hinks, expressed confidence that the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) will soon be cleared and renewed by the US Congress given that the existing legislation expires on 30 September 2015. The renewal of AGOA was at the fore of discussions during a courtesy call yesterday by a delegation of the CCA led by Mr Paul Hinks, on the Prime Minister, Sir Anerood Jugnauth, at the...

19 May 2015

The US capital is set next week to host the 11 th annual US-sub-Saharan Africa trade forum commonly known as the AGOA Forum. AGOA, an abbreviation for the African Growth and Opportunity Act, is an Act is designed to strengthen trade between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa by creating a preferential trade and investment relationship. Since its inception in 2000, about 38 African countries are currently benefiting from AGOA. The...

05 June 2012

The ambassadors of Mauritius and Zambia to the US have made a joint appeal to the US Congress to extend the third-country fabric provision under the Africa Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA) for the benefit of workers and businesses in the African countries as well as in the US. They said the passage of legislations S. 2007 and H.R. 2493 would enable the US to continue to receive high-quality textiles and apparels from Africa at competitive...

10 May 2012

Deputy United States Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis has led a US delegation to Mauritius for talks with the local government under the US-Mauritius Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), to discuss a broad range of issues relating to their bilateral trade and investment relationship. This was the fifth TIFA Council meeting with Mauritius, and the discussions included the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), the...

23 January 2012

Following yesterday's consultations under the US - Mauritius Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis met with Mauritius Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam. During their lengthy meeting, they discussed a number of issues regarding the U.S. economic relationship with Mauritius and the broader sub-Saharan region, including the extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act’s (AGOA)...

19 January 2012

Trade between Mauritius and the United States was valued at $237 million in 2007, with U.S. imports of $188 million and U.S. exports of $50 million. The leading U.S. exports to Mauritius were wheat, diamonds, aircraft, and jewelry. U.S. imports from Mauritius are primarily apparel, diamonds, seafood, perfumes, and sugar. In 2007, U.S. imports from Mauritius under AGOA, including its GSP provisions, were valued at $120 million. To further...

29 April 2008