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South Africa’s citrus sector in the western parts of the country has always retained a keen interest in US political views over promoting African trade to the US Promoting better access for Africa into the US is done mainly under the AGOA (African Growth and Opportunities ACT) which have benefited exporters from Africa since 2000. It will now be under review and perhaps re-negotiated during the next year if a new act has to come into effect in 2025. It is certain that in the USA there will be calls for changes where the House of...

The text of the following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America and the Kenya on the occasion of U.S.-Kenya Bilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington, D.C. on April 24, 2023. Begin Text: The Governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Kenya held the third iteration of the U.S.-Kenya Bilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington, D.C. on April 24, 2023.  The U.S.-Kenya Strategic Partnership is grounded in mutual cooperation, respect, and a common vision for sustainable...

Kenya and the United States of America have successfully completed the second round of negotiations on Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP), an agreement that aims to strengthen the two countries’ bilateral and investment relations. Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria said a lot of progress has been made in the negotiations, an indication that both states are committed to enhancing trade between the two countries. He said the partnership also aims at boosting trade and investment...

The impact of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) programme on beneficiary countries within Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) can be substantial depending on the sector, according to a report by the US International Trade Commission (USITC). The programme has had a positive impact on poverty reduction and job growth in some countries, particularly in the apparel sector. AGOA benefits accrue to a subset of countries and sectors within Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Over three-quarters of non-crude petroleum imports under AGOA originated from...

Nearly 23 years since the United States established the African Growth and Opportunity Act, or AGOA, the continent it was created for no longer exists. In the last two decades, there have been three major shifts that have worked together to cultivate a new Africa—an Africa that requires a different approach to trade and economic investment. First, there are China’s development initiatives, which have resulted in roads, rails, bridges, and airports. China has also invested in mining, fishing, and manufacturing, and shown...

The administration of Kenya’s President William Ruto has begun the negotiation round of the proposed bilateral deal with the United States, which will replace the more-than-two-decade-old African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) amid protestations from smallholder farmers. The four-day talks, which kicked off in Nairobi on Monday, follow the round of conceptual discussions held in Washington between February 6 and 10. President Ruto’s negotiating team, led by Trade PS Alfred K’Ombudo, and the Assistant US Trade Representative for...

A major U.S. trade preference program for Sub-Saharan Africa has been successful for developing the region's apparel sector in selected countries, but its benefits are not widespread throughout all countries and sectors, a new report to the U.S. Congress showed on Monday. The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) said its  report on the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) trade benefits shows that they have helped reduce poverty and create jobs in certain countries, particularly for women. But over three quarters of...

Stakeholders now want the government to exclude agriculture digital trade and anti-corruption in its Strategic Trade and Investments Partnership (STIP) with United States. Econews Africa, a pan African Research and Advocacy organisation and Kenya Small Scale Farmers Forum (KESSFF) say that Kenya will likely be the loser in the pact is signed in its current state. The STIP is a proposed agreement to act as a successor to the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) mechanism that has guided trade between Kenya and US enabling the two...

Cameroon is working to boost export revenues to fend off a potential debt crisis and has relaunched talks with the U.S. to rejoin Washington's flagship trade initiative with Africa, its economy minister said on Monday. The economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent global shocks provoked by the war in Ukraine have hit African countries hard, denting economic growth and aggravating their sovereign debt positions. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts that Cameroon, a Central African oil producer, will record...

Last year, the US’s Biden administration announced plans to increase two-way trade and investment between the US and Africa. The starting point was a revamp of the Trump-era “Prosper Africa initiative”. As American secretary of state Antony Blinken visits three African nations – South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda – Kefa Otiso and Francis Owusu provide insights into US-Africa trade relations and what’s being planned to improve them. What sort of trade arrangement is the US proposing? In July 2021,...

The Somali government officially applied to join the 36 African countries on Thursday, benefiting from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The announcement was made during the Somalia AGOA application ceremony, where outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Somalia, Larry André, highlighted the United States’ commitment to expanding and modernizing partnerships in Africa and Somalia. Ambassador André emphasized that the U.S. will focus on working with Somalia and its people to find innovative solutions to new and...

Kenya is hopeful of sealing a trade deal with the US by the end of this year, as the second round of physical meetings heads to Nairobi next month. This comes a mid increased interest in Kenya’s Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) by the US at this year’s American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Business Summit in Nairobi, a strategic platform for strengthening two-way trade and investment between the two countries, and East Africa. A US delegation is expected in Nairobi next month for what is expected to be a...

The United States and Kenya will hold an in-person negotiating round under their Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP) in Kenya from April 17-20, 2023.  The United States delegation will be led by Assistant United States Trade Representative Connie Hamilton, and will include representatives from several other U.S. government agencies. Conceptual discussions under the STIP initiative were held in Washington, DC, on February 6-February 10, 2023. During those meetings, the United States and Kenya engaged in productive...

One of the biggest and most influential US business lobby groups in America and a top American lawmaker on trade have urged the Biden administration to fast-track the Trump-era trade talks with Kenya, piling pressure on Washington to conclude the negotiations. They also want Washington to dialogue with Nairobi on the basis of the original or initial proposed model of a free trade agreement with Kenya, which was initiated by Biden's predecessor Donald Trump. They say such a trade deal has many benefits for the US but also Kenya and will...

The East African Community (EAC) wants the US government to make the rules governing access to their market more flexible under the planned renewal of the African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA). The regional bloc, during its Council of Ministers Ordinary meeting held in February, made four new proposals to the Joe Biden administration to expand Agoa and make it more effective should the US Congress hasten its renewal before the 2025 expiry date. The proposals come in the wake of plans by the American Chamber of Commerce Kenya (AmCham), a...

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 humanitarian needs. The Ethiopian government and forces from Tigray signed a ceasefire in...

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 (AGOA) program effective 1 January 2022, accusing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government of “gross...

Women entrepreneurs are important sources of innovation, job creation, and economic growth, and critical actors in every aspect of the agriculture value chain.  The U.S. Embassy is pleased to partner with the American Chamber of Commerce in Madagascar (AmCham) to empower Malagasy women entrepreneurs in the agriculture sector to access U.S. markets.  More than half of AmCham Madagascar’s member companies operating in the food sector are led by women, but many of these companies do not take advantage of the lucrative U.S. market...

Kenyan manufacturers have asked the Trade ministry to request Washington to extend the existing duty- and quota-free access to the expansive US market window for another 15 years as the two countries prepare for talks over a long-term bilateral trade deal. The Kenya Association of Manufacturers, the sector lobby, argues that uncertainty over the more than two decades-Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) deal, which expires in two years, is costing the country billions of shillings in potential investments. “Kenya should seek an Agoa...

In the middle of an energy crisis and greylisting, SA could do without antagonising one of its biggest trade and investment partners. When SA welcomed the Russian warship Admiral Gorshkov — with the Kremlin’s pro-war symbol, the letter “Z”, on prominent display — it sparked a new diplomatic crisis with the US that could have profound economic consequences.    This past week the US Congress introduced a resolution to reconsider its relationship with SA. House Resolution 145 opposes SA’s hosting of military exercises...

Kenya and the United States have concluded the first round of Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP) that will form a basis for future bilateral engagements. The Kenyan delegation, led by Trade Principal Secretary Alfred K’Ombudo, hope that the five-day talks on the free trade agreement will bear fruits. The government has been scouting for areas of collaboration that will increase foreign direct investment, promote sustainable and inclusive growth that will also support women and small and medium enterprise...

Pankaj Bedi strides through his factory on the edge of Nairobi, past clattering sewing machines, bustling workers and boxes of jeans. None of this would be here, he says, were it not for the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The landmark trade policy was introduced by Bill Clinton in 2000, granting duty-free access for more than 6,000 products from sub-Saharan Africa. Two years later, Mr Bedi opened United Aryan, his clothing business in Kenya. He now employs 14,000 people. Lately Mr Bedi’s financiers have all been asking...

U.S. and Kenyan officials are meeting this week in Washington for the first negotiating round of the U.S.-Kenya Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP). Public Citizen submitted recommendations for the U.S.-Kenya negotiations to USTR as part of its public comment process last year. Melinda St. Louis, Global Trade Watch director at Public Citizen, issued the following statement: “The U.S. and Kenyan governments should start with a transparent and participatory negotiation process to ensure that these...

Trade representatives from Kenya and the US are set to hold an in-person first round of conceptual discussions under the Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP) in Washington, DC, from February 6th to 10th. The US delegation will be led by Assistant Trade Representative Connie Hamilton and will include representatives from several other government agencies, the Office of the US Trade Representative said in a press release. The two nations launched the Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP) in July last year to replace...

The United States and Kenya will hold an in-person round of conceptual discussions under their Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP) in Washington, DC, from February 6-10, 2023.   The United States delegation will be led by Assistant United States Trade Representative Connie Hamilton, and will include representatives from several other government agencies. United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai and then-Kenyan Cabinet Secretary Betty Maina launched the U.S.-Kenya STIPon July 14, 2022 and...

Economic integration efforts underway in Africa and new ideas about decades-old U.S. trade policy could provide a host of options for bolstering Washington’s cornerstone trade policy program with sub-Saharan African countries, analysts and former senior officials tell Inside U.S. Trade. The African Growth and Opportunity Act, first signed into law in 2000, “has done more than people give it credit for, but it has not done nearly enough that it could and should do,” former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Florizelle Liser said in an...

US treasury secretary Janet Yellen is in town this week. While news headlines have focused on the overlapping visits to the continent of Yellen, Russia’s Sergey Lavrov and China’s Qin Gang, Yellen’s comparative advantage is marked. She’s a pre-eminent economist — the first to have led the Federal Reserve, the White House council of economic advisers and the treasury — and she’s here to leverage that experience to build US-Africa relations. Fellow columnist John Dludlu recently suggested Washington’s overtures to Africa are...

The US is seeking to deepen its economic integration with South Africa in pursuit of policies to diversify global supply chains, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said. Closer ties with nations that share the US’s economic values will help promote so-called friendshoring, in which allies cooperate on manufacturing and sourcing raw materials, Yellen said at a meeting with South African Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on Thursday.  Her remarks come in a week in which South Africa defended its neutral stance in Russia’s...

The United States International Trade Commission (USITC) intends to issue an order imposing anti-dumping duties on lemon juice imported from South Africa and Brazil. The agency advises the US government on trade matters and intends to release a report based on its investigation by early March this year. The USITC announced on Monday that it had completed an investigation, which indicated that lemon juice imports from SA and Brazil either are materially injuring the US market or pose a threat of doing so, due to being sold at less-than-fair...

African countries may need more trade privileges with the US even as Washington reviews the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) meant to expand what the continent will export. At the end of the US-Africa summit in December, Washington pledged to renew Agoa, bringing clarity to uncertainties that had befell exporters from countries such as Kenya. But now experts say the narrow view of Agoa should be expanded to allow them to export more goods and hence benefit more countries that are able to make a diversified list of goods. “Agoa...

The second edition of the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit (ALS) took place in Washington last week. Much has changed since former president Barack Obama held the inaugural summit in 2014, halfway through his second term. At that time, the geopolitical environment for strengthening ties was less fraught: global economic integration was accelerating, and Africa was “rising” from sluggish growth and persistent poverty. The initial summit was framed as an important first step in engaging with a “a new, more prosperous Africa,” as Obama put...

(1) In Proclamation 7853 of December 10, 2004, the President designated Burkina Faso as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of section 506A(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (the “Trade Act”), as added by section 111(a) of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (the “AGOA”) (title I of Public Law 106-200, 114 Stat. 251, 257-58 (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(1))). (2) Section 506A(a)(3) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2466a(a)(3)) provides that the President shall terminate the designation of a country as a beneficiary...

The Trade and Industry Minister, Alan Kyerematen, has advocated for intensive investment in the agricultural sector as part of major plans to economically empower the African continent. The Minister made this pronouncement during the recent summit of US- African leaders in Washington DC. The US-Africa Leaders’ Summit was anchored on the shared values of fostering new economic engagement; reinforcing the US-Africa commitment to democracy and human rights; mitigating the impact of Covid-19 and future pandemics. It also focused on working...

The outcome of the US-Africa Leaders Summit once again shows why the continent is better off looking inwards for solutions. As the dust settles, the deals unveiled at the summit are coming under closer scrutiny. The $15 billion and the headline commitment by President Joe Biden to inject $55 billion into the continent over a three-year period have particularly attracted animated debate. On social media platforms, many commentators suggested that it was too little for a continent of 55 nations. Parted out evenly, that would average $360...

U.S. President Joe Biden capped a summit of 50 African leaders by stressing his administration's deep commitment to Africa, urging the continent's leaders to respect the will of their people, and saying he may come visit. The U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit concluded Thursday with bonhomie, $55 billion (Sh6.8 trillion) in U.S. commitments, and this from Biden: "As I told some of you — you invited me to your countries," he said. "I said, "Be careful what you wish for because I may show up. The poor relatives always show up. The wealthy ones...

On December 14, 2022, the United States and African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat (AfCFTA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation for Trade and Investment between the United States and the African Continental Free Trade Area (MOU) see document alongside.  The MOU  was signed by U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai and AfCFTA Secretary General Wamkele Mene during the 2022 U.S.-Africa Business Forum.  The African Continental Free Trade Area was established in March 2018 and currently...

The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) and more than 20 organisations have appealed for long-term renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The apparel industry of US, in a letter to President Joe Biden, urged the government to prioritise this request at the ongoing US-Africa Leaders Summit that will end on December 15, 2022. The organisations emphasised on the timely renewal of AGOA for a 10-year period, so that it would be impactful for companies hoping to grow commitments towards a vertical, responsible,...

The U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, from December 13-15 in Washington DC, highlighted the U.S. commitment to expanding and deepening our partnership with African countries, institutions, and people.  Our world is quickly changing, and U.S. engagement in Africa must evolve accordingly.  African leadership and contributions are essential to addressing today’s pressing challenges and achieving shared priorities.  The Biden-Harris Administration is deepening longstanding areas of cooperation while revitalizing and expanding our...

Africa’s integration into global markets, demographic boom, and continent-wide spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation present an extraordinary opportunity for the United States to invest in Africa’s future.   The United States will support and facilitate mobilizing private capital to fuel economic growth, job creation, and greater U.S. participation in Africa’s future.   Together, business and government leaders will strengthen trade- and investment-enabling environments, including fostering the development and...

African leaders face a dilemma over trade relations with the United States. Should they push for the extension of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) or for each country’s bilateral trade deal with the world’s biggest economy? AGOA was the signature economic policy of the Bill Clinton administration. It provides eligible sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the US market for over 1,800 products. It is set to expire in 2025 but is up for discussion at the annual forum on AGOA taking place alongside the...

 As President Joe Biden hosts nearly 50 African leaders in a summit aiming to boost U.S.-Africa relations, one prominent issue has circulated across the Hill: the renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which is set to expire in 2025.  What is it? The 22-year-old program works to provide eligible sub-Saharan African nations with additional duty-free access to more than 1,800 designated products, with the aim of assisting the countries and easing economic relations between the U.S. and Africa.  Senate...

The duty-free access for nearly 40 African countries in a 22-year-old U.S. trade program is no longer enough to boost their development and a focus on improving investment is needed, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said on Tuesday. Tai, after a meeting with African counterparts at the start of a Sub-Saharan African leaders summit in Washington, said the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) needs improving to foster more equitable and sustainable growth.  Speaking at a U.S. Export-Import Bank conference, Tai said ministers...

For only the second time in eight years, leaders from the United States and Africa will meet next week in the nation’s capital to discuss economic matters and other topics. President Joe Biden is expected to host roughly more than 50 African heads of state from Dec. 13 through Dec. 15 in Washington, D.C., at the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in 2022.  The fresh effort is aimed to “demonstrate the United States’ enduring commitment to Africa and emphasize the significance of building new relations between both...

8 years after former US President Obama had African leaders come over to the US capital, President Biden, then Vice President of the US, has replicated the gesture of his former principal.  This week more than 40 African heads of state were in Washington D.C for the second US-Africa Leaders Summit. Leader-to-leader meetings were expected but not announced in the lead-up to the summit. Ultimately, Biden failed to hold any talks directly with African heads of state. That role fell to Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, who held talks...

As the United States looks to usher in a “new version” of globalization focused on resilience, inclusivity, and sustainability, it has eyes on its economic relationship with Africa, according to US Trade Representative Katherine Tai. Tai spoke at an Atlantic Council Front Page event on Friday alongside the African Continental Free Trade Area’s (AfCFTA) secretary-general, Wamkele Mene. She explained that the current form of globalization has done a great job to expand the size of the economic pie, but it “hasn’t done a...

MEDIA ADVISORY   |  December 7  Digital Press Briefing on U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit with U.S. Department of State Bureau of African Affairs Assistant Secretary of State, Molly Phee, and National Security Council Senior Director for African Affairs, Judd Devermont.  EVENT:  Please join us on Wednesday, December 7, 2022, for a digital press briefing with the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs Assistant Secretary of State, Molly Phee and National Security Council Senior Director...

In early August, with its release of its strategy toward sub-Saharan Africa, the Biden-Harris administration laid out a bold vision for a 21st-century US-Africa partnership. The strategy and the upcoming Africa Leaders Summit, which President Biden and his deputy Harris will host in December, comes at the right time. Africa’s economic transformation — spurred by its young and rapidly urbanising populations, digitalisation initiatives, abundant natural and human resources, and a continent-wide commitment to free trade — has proceeded...

The president and CEO of the Washington-based Corporate Council on Africa talks to African Business ahead of the US-Africa Leaders Summit in December. The US-Africa Leaders Summit takes place in Washington, DC, from December 13 to 15 2022. With 49 African leaders invited, the meeting is due to cover multiple aspects of the relationship between the US and Africa, including economic engagement, security, education, health and climate-related issues. Florie Liser has headed the Washington-based Corporate Council on Africa since...

Despite disruptions to the world economy, the Biden administration has delivered on its bid to ramp up trade and investment with Africa, says Laird Treiber of the CSIS.   In the context of the global food, fuel and pandemic crises, how do you think Washington’s Africa policy has shaped up compared to President Joe Biden’s predecessors? The Biden team has done a pretty good job of coordinating with allies, the IMF, international bodies, the World Bank and others. There has been a host of disruptions to production and global...

Gabon announced Thursday plans to inject around $20.5 million to support exports towards the U.S over next three years, reports say. Yves Fernand Manfoumbi, the Minister of Trade of the African country, announced the move adding that the strategy will tap into support from bilateral and multilateral financial partners. “This strategy will be financed by multilateral and bilateral financial partners and, of course, by direct financing from the State’s resources,” Manfoumbi said. “The activities planned each year will be subject to...