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The Ministry of Investment Trade and Industry (MITI) in collaboration with Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC), U.S. Embassy in Botswana, USAID Southern Africa Trade and Investment Hub, African Women’s Entrepreneurship Program (AWEP), the Local Enterprise Authority (LEA), the Citizen Entrepreneurship Development Agency (CEDA) and the Botswana Export Credit Insurance (BECI) are conducting nation-wide workshops to sensitize the business community about the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) strategy and potential export...

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer delivered President Trump’s Trade Policy Agenda and Annual Report to Congress today, outlining how the Administration is promoting free, fair and reciprocal trade and strongly enforcing U.S. trade laws. “President Trump is keeping his promises to the American people on trade, from withdrawing the United States from the flawed Trans-Pacific Partnership, to renegotiating NAFTA, to strongly enforcing U.S. trade laws,” said Ambassador Robert Lighthizer.  “We are...

The President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has made a strong case for increased American and global investments to help unlock Africa’s agriculture potential. He made the remarks as the Distinguished Guest Speaker, at the USDA’s 94th Agriculture Outlook Forum in Virginia on Thursday, on the theme The Roots of Prosperity. According to Adesina, “For too long, Agriculture has been associated with what I call the three Ps – pain, penury, and poverty. The fact though is that...

Regional leaders met in Kampala on Friday to devise means of increasing East Africa’s trade competitiveness through, among other means, creating a competitive textiles industry. The leaders were speaking at the East African Community (EAC) Heads of State Retreat on Infrastructure, Health Financing and Development in Kampala. “The summit, with regard to promoting the cotton, textile, apparel and leather industries in the region, to make the region more competitive and create jobs decided to prioritize the development of a competitive...

East African countries have backed down on their initial stand on banning the importation secondhand clothing. Instead they will use of tax measures and incentives to spur local manufacturing. During the EAC Heads of State retreat on infrastructure and health financing in Kampala, the EAC presidents resolved to prioritise the development of a competitive domestic textile and leather sector to provide affordable clothes and leather products in the region. “Partner states should now focus on boosting the EAC textile and footwear...

The U.S. needs a new approach to Africa that is focused more on developing commercial ties and less on providing aid, analysts and government officials said Friday. Speaking at a Center for Strategic and International Studies event, Erin Walsh, assistant secretary of Commerce for global markets, said it was critical for the U.S. to pivot from a focus on aid to Africa to one of commercial engagement with African countries. To that end, she said, the President’s Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa, which is led by Commerce...

This is a guest blog post by Anthony Carroll. Anthony is founding director of Acorus Capital, a private equity fund investing in Africa, and a vice president of Manchester Trade Limited, an international business advisory firm. He has over forty years of experience working with Africa and is an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.   Last Friday’s State of the Nation Address by newly-elected South African President Cyril Ramaphosa outlined many of the challenges that confront his...

The U.S has made a fresh call for the East African Community not to phase out imported used clothes and leather products locally known as “Chagua”, but Rwanda says the U.S should not shift goals on what was agreed by the parties in 2015 when the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), pact was renewed. Genesis In 2015, the East African Community (EAC) Heads of State adopted a three-year gradual process to phase out the importation of second-hand clothes and footwear to promote textile, apparel and leather industries in the region...

East African Community Heads of State are expected to convene in Uganda’s capital Kampala next week to discuss a number of regional matters, including infrastructure and health sector growth. Olivier Nduhungirehe, the State Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and East African Community, confirmed to The New Times on the agenda includes a two-day Joint EAC Heads of State Retreat on Infrastructure and Health Financing and Development. The meeting will be held between February 21 and 22 and will be followed a...