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The United States has been challenged to seek ways of increasing investment in Africa to enable the continent take fuller advantage of Africa Growth Opportunity Act. Experts say the levels of savings in Africa as being too low to promote investment, thus the need to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Speaking during the plenary session on ‘Successes, Challenges and Prospects of AGOA’, recently, the Secretary General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) Mr Siniso Ngwenya said: “Whereas modest increases...

Sub-Sahara African countries, including Namibia, are calling for a permanent and predictable African Growth and Opportunity Act framework through which they can trade with the US.They say production capacity, high transportation costs as well as stringent sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures are among key challenges hindering the expansion of trade between Sub-Sahara Africa and the US.Lack of capacity to produce competitive goods and services due to supply-side constraints, lengthy procedures to comply with US standards and high...

Africa must lobby the World Trade Organisation for exemption to rules that bar member states from signing non-reciprocal trade pacts if the United States is to extend the Agoa pact beyond 2015, trade experts said.Extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) beyond 2015 is seen to be critical to Africa’s ability to attract investment it needs to prop up the competitiveness of the sectors that produce for export under the preferential terms.Trade experts say the six years remaining before expiry of Agoa is limiting capital...

Kenya last week hosted the 8th USA-Africa AGOA Forum, an annual event mandated by the AGOA legislation. The Forum took place over three days from 4-6 August, with the first day dedicated to private sector and civil society sessions, and the next two to the Ministerial. This was open to all registered delegates. The US' high-powered delegation to this year's event was spearheaded by Hillary Clinton who began her 11-day Africa trip in Kenya. Others included at least three congressmen, including Jim McDermott, one of the original architects of...

Sudath Perera has every reason to be content. He started up his textiles factory outside the Kenyan capital Nairobi nine years ago; today, he employs 1500 workers and turns over between 18 and 20 million U.S. dollars a year.“We are contributing to the local economy by creating employment,” he says. “And indirectly there are a lot of local suppliers also relying on us.”Perera’s factory is one of thousands of businesses on the continent that are taking advantage of a U.S. trade programme under which certain goods from around 40...

Chronic poverty and hunger in Africa have come under the searchlight of the continent's women scientists and the United States (U.S.) government.Under its new response to the twin problems in Africa, the Barack Obama administration is counting on the continent's women farmers/scientists to bail out millions of Africans from poverty and hunger in the region.These were some of the decisions taken in Nairobi, Kenya, during a parley between the African women and visiting American officials led by the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.And when...

The past week saw a disruption in the life of many Nairobians as we made room for both the 8th African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) forum. I wish to address the issue of Agoa from a business perspective and posit here that in its current form and with Africa’s current approach, it is probably much ado about little.What is Agoa all about? This question has two sides to its answer. According to the Agoa.info portal, The Agoa is “a United States Trade Act that significantly enhances US market access for (currently) 39 Sub-Saharan...

President Obama encouraged maximizing trade relations between the United States and Africa today in a video message to a conference in Kenya.Formed from the African Growth and Opportunities Act that was signed by President Clinton and went into effect in 2000, the AGOA Forum is focused on discussing critical economic and trade issues facing sub-Saharan Africa. The AGOA was intended to expand access to American markets for the 39 Sub-Saharan African countries."By breaking down old barriers and opening new markets, we not only increase trade...

The expiry of the trade protection that has ushered in stiff competition from low-cost producers in Asia and US-originated trade barriers are the two major reasons Kenyan textile exports to the world’s largest economy are low.The end of the multi-fibre agreement (MFA) trade quotas for textiles opened the US market to exporters of cheaper products from India, Bangladesh and Vietnam – who have now taken a bigger chunk of the US market.The final nail in the coffin of textile manufacturers in Kenya’s Export Processing Zones (EPZ) was the...

Ethiopian food processing companies and Manufacturers hold a three day discussion to find easy ways that enable them to upgrade their exporting and penetrate specialty food market in the US, using the Africa Growth opportunity Act (AGOA).Facilitated by USAID/AGOA Plus project, training is being conducted for local companies at the Sheraton Addis here by US leading food company, Tailing Trading Group, Managing Director, Jim Tailler.The Managing Director told local manufacturers they need "strong competitive" to penetrate in the US...

African nations doing business with the United States under the African Growth and Opportunity Act have resolved to take a new approach based on regional trading blocs in their quest for a bigger share of the American market.This has come even as passionate calls are being made for African countries to increase trade among themselves.At the 8th Agoa Forum in Nairobi last week, Kenya’s Prime Minister Raila Odinga said Africa must “focus strongly on building regional trade”, which he said remains so pitifully small.“We must re-orient...

The African Growth and Opportunity Act should be amended to make it a permanent trade programme if it is to achieve its purpose of strengthening trade between sub-Saharan Africa and the United States.This is one in a raft of recommendations that traders attending the 8th Agoa Forum in Nairobi sent to the US.The suggestion was backed by the African Union Deputy Chairperson, Erastus Mwencha.Mr Mwencha, who is also a former secretary-general of Comesa, said the Act should be investment-friendly and predictable to encourage investors to take...

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the State Department are reviewing Madagascar’s eligibility as an African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) beneficiary country after its army forced President Marc Ravalomanana out of office and installed his political rival in office last March. USTR and State will likely require Madagascar to hold democratic elections this year in order to remain on the list of AGOA beneficiary countries. If those elections do not take place, Madagascar’s AGOA benefits will be suspended for at least one...

Kenya's growth since the advent of AGOAAmos Kimunya - Kenya Minister of TradeAGOA summit opens

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrives in South Africa on a visit South Africa hopes will lead to closer ties and cooperation in a number of areas. Some non-governmental organizations are hoping the visit will lead to the United States providing developmental assistance to Zimbabwe.Secretary Clinton will meet Friday with International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane. South African authorities are hoping that the meeting will lead to the formation of a mechanism to replace the defunct binational commission,...

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had good news for Africa in the Nairobi forum yesterday on the US African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). AGOA offers breaks from quotas and duties on African exports to the US. First enacted under Bush, AGOA is at least a partial success story, with exemplars like textile exports in Lesotho and Madagascar. Secretary Clinton yesterday endorsed new efforts to “maximize the promise of AGOA.” She declared “we are committed to trade policies that support prosperity and stability.”Except when we...

Kenya on Wednesday called on the U.S. government to consider helping African countries to enable the continent reap maximum benefits from the trade.Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki also urged development partners to consider further facilitation to African countries to stimulate economic growth so as to benefit more from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).Kibaki noted that African countries must strive to produce enough of the 6,400 eligible products for export to the U. S. large "It is clear that the vast U.S. market is at the...

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday urged African countries to break down the trade barriers in order to spur business with each other.Clinton told the three-day African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) forum in Nairobi that Africa should "tear down trade barriers with each other"."The nations of Africa trade least with each other. You must work to tear down trade barriers amongst yourselves. Creating a favorable investment climate also requires countries to translate politics into governing," she told over 2,000 delegates at...

On Tuesday 04 August, the 8th annual AGOA Forum began in the Kenyan capital city Nairobi. Below are a few video impressions from Day 1. Kenya's growth since the advent of AGOAAmos Kimunya - Kenya Minister of TradeAGOA summit opens

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) should be amended to make it a permanent trade program if it is to achieve the intended purpose of strengthening trade between Sub-Saharan Africa and the US, a trade expert has proposed.African Union (AU) Deputy Chairperson Erastus Mwencha, who is a former Secretary General of COMESA, said on Tuesday that the Act should be investment-friendly and predictable to encourage investors to take advantage of the opportunities it presents.“This element is lacking in the Act and that is an area that we...

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton faces a delicate job striking the right tone on her seven-nation trip to Africa next week if she wants to compete against China's growing influence.The 11-day trip - Clinton's longest as secretary of state - comes three weeks after President Barack Obama visited Ghana and told African leaders to behave more responsibly, warning that to receive Western aid, there must be good governance.Pressing for good governance and stamping out corruption is seen as important across the continent, but Africa experts...

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is bringing a message of tough love to Kenya: you are a key American friend in east Africa, but you must rein in graft and follow through on political reform.On the first leg of a seven-nation tour of Africa, Clinton will speak to Kenya's leadership about U.S. concerns for the country, the homeland of President Barack Obama's father, in the wake of corruption scandals and disputed 2007 elections that led to violence that left more than 1,000 dead."We remain concerned about the trajectory of the...

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and high-level delegations from countries in sub-Saharan Africa meet in Nairobi, Kenya Wednesday for the 8th annual Africa Growth and Opporunity Act (AGOA) forum.Commonly known as AGOA, the forum will discuss how Africa can take better advantage of U.S. legislation signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 2000. It is the centerpiece of U.S. trade and investment policy in Africa.[insert caption here]AGOA provides 41 African countries with duty and quota free access to U.S. markets but it has met...

The ground that Kenya has covered in implementing political and economic reforms comes under scrutiny this week as 40 African countries converge on Nairobi to compete for the attention of American investors.The American investors who started streaming into the country yesterday for the eighth African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) forum are expected to place high premium on the individual country’s image abroad and the key reforms being pursued to limit risks on investments in the region.Strict observance of the rule of law is one of...

A US specialty food development company is helping African countries develop higher-end products for export to U.S. and worldwide markets.The company, Talier Trading Group, now works in 14 African countries."In Kenya, we export coffee, tea, honey and a range of cooking sauces," said Jim Thaller, the company's chief executive officer. "We do jams from Senegal. We do juices. A lot of what we do is very regional-specific."Thaller talked with America.gov at the combined private sector-civil society opening session at the Eighth AGOA Forum in...

The Eighth African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum in Nairobi -- like other such AGOA forums -- not only discusses trade and business but also has an important civil society element that looks at how Africans and Americans can be better educated about the advantages of AGOA and how both can benefit from more trade.The civil society component has two co-chairmen: M. Ayoma Matunga, programs officer for the Social Development Network in Kenya, who is chairing on behalf of the Kenya Civil Society Alliance, and Gregory B. Simpkins, vice...

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s trip to Africa, where she will emphasize the need to provide lasting food security by improving the continent’s agricultural sector with American help, brings a welcome message, says Sierra Leone’s ambassador to the United States, Bockari Stevens.“I don’t think Africans want to beg for aid. What we want is partnerships, private-sector investment in order to empower our farmers to be able to produce themselves,” Stevens told a July 29 panel discussion on food security sponsored by the...

The historic U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has created a positive impact across sub-Saharan Africa, and one such development has been the establishment of private equity stock markets in many African countries.Robert Mathu, executive director of Rwanda's Capital Market Advisory Council, made that point in a July 30 interview with America.gov at the headquarters of the Rwanda Capital Market, which runs the country's stock exchange. Mathu made his comments before the opening of the 8th AGOA Forum in Nairobi, Kenya, August...

President Kibaki wants the US to extend a provision in the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), which turns a blind eye to the origin of fabric used to make clothing.Known as the "Third Country Provision", it allows Kenyan textile firms to import fabric from other countries and use it to make apparel for export to America, without paying duty to US Customs.The provision was originally meant to expire in 2007, but was extended to 2012 during the Third Agoa Summit.Speaking at the Eighth Agoa Summit at KICC, Nairobi, Kibaki said extending...

US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson and the Kenyan ambassador to the United States, Peter N.R.O. Ogego, formally announced July 23 that the eighth annual U.S.-Sub-Saharan African Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum will be held in Nairobi, Kenya, August 4–6 and could not be taking place at a more opportune time because of the world economic crisis.The forum is more commonly known as the AGOA Forum, for the African Growth and Opportunity Act.“In this time of economic crisis,” Carson said, “it is...

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will begin a seven nation trip to Africa on August 5 at the 8th U.S. - Sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum (known as the AGOA Forum) in Nairobi, Kenya.While in Kenya, Secretary Clinton will focus on the linkages between investment and economic growth, as well as the singular opportunities provided to African countries through the landmark African Growth and Opportunity Act. The Secretary will be joined in Kenya by Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, U.S. Trade Representative...

The question on everyone’s lips is what Kenya stands to gain as the 8th African Growth and Opportunity Act forum comes to Nairobi.The forum is the only annual ministerial event between sub-Saharan Africa and the United States. While it presents the best possible opportunity for exporters in Kenya to step up their presence in the US market, it is also a chance for a Strength, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats (Swot) analysis on Agoa.This meeting, from August 4-6, is taking place at a time when the global economy is slowly pulling itself...

Enhanced market access to the United States - a key feature of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) - remains a "critical component" for Africa's long-term economic growth and development, says longtime Africa trade facilitator and attorney Anthony Carroll.Carroll, a member of the Corporate Council on Africa and vice president of Manchester Trade Ltd., a Washington-based consulting firm specializing in international trade and investment, July 21 discussed with America.gov the 8th Annual AGOA Forum, which will take place in Nairobi,...

“As for America and the West, our commitment must be measured by more than just the dollars we spend. But the true sign of success is not whether we are a source of perpetual aid that helps people scrape by -it is whether we are partners in building the capacity for transformational change…..We must first recognize the fundamental truth that you have given life to in Ghana. Development depends on good governance. That is the ingredient which has been missing in far too many places…..’’— President Barack Obama Speech before The...

Sometime in 2004, some 'agents' promised Rift Valley farmers a fortune if they turned to 'more lucrative cash crops' which would be exported to America. French beans dominated the list of the new cash crops. To the small-scale pyrethrum farmers, the campaign came as a godsend. One of extraction plants belonging to the Pyrethrum Board of Kenya had just burnt down, leaving them with no alternative market. They were promised Sh150,000 per acre of the French beans. This was so alluring for groups who would otherwise have to wait for up to...

In two weeks’ time, nearly 300 high level American businessmen descend on Nairobi for the Agoa round table meeting. This is not to mention a retinue of elaborate state department security for Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State for International Affairs.At a glance, Kenya is looking forward to at least 2,000 highly priced businessmen that will be in the capital for a week with a good possibility of leaving some of their dollars behind. Obviously it will be boom time for hoteliers, tour operators, airlines, taxi drivers and even vendors on...

Improving African lives at the grass-roots level, building businesses and supporting reconciliation after conflict are all part of the vision of the African Development Foundation, a major partner in the African Growth and Opportunity Act ( AGOA ) Forum taking place in Nairobi, Kenya, in August.The AGOA Forum — which is held annually to examine and enhance the U.S.-Africa trade and business relationship — serves a “common purpose” to create a “better quality of life for Africans,” says Lloyd Pierson, president and chief executive...

The primary goal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) — which was signed into law as part of the larger Trade and Development Act in 2000 — was to help increase both the volume and diversity of U.S. trade with sub-Saharan Africa.“AGOA also promotes economic cooperation and trade among the countries of sub-Saharan Africa by encouraging intraregional trade among AGOA beneficiary countries,” Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Florizelle Liser testified at a recent congressional hearing. Two-way trade between the United...

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) are cornerstones of the Obama administration's development policy for Africa because they are complementary and have the potential to stimulate trade and investment across the continent.Jeri Jensen, MCC's managing director of private-sector initiatives, and Jonathan Bloom, deputy vice president for Africa programs at MCC, described the importance of AGOA and MCC in a recent interview with America.gov as they looked ahead to the 8th Annual AGOA...

The Ambassador of the United States of America to Cameroon, Janet E.Garvey yesterday, July 20 encouraged the Minister of External Relations, Henri Eyebe Ayissi to "ensure that Cameroon has a great representation in the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) conference which is taking place in a few weeks in Kenya". Speaking to the press after an audience with Mr Eyebe Ayissi, the USA ambassador said, "I will like to see Cameroon take advantage of the Kenya AGOA conference", considering that the US Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton will...

Kenya’s exports to the US through the African Growth Opportunity Act (Agoa) facility increased to Sh20 billion last year, up from Sh15 billion in 2005, despite the effects of the global financial crisis and the election related chaos, Trade Minister Amos Kimunya has said.Cut-flowers, apparel and clothing formed the bulk of products exported to the US.Kimunya, however, says there is need to diversify the exports to deepen penetration."Despite the many opportunities available under the Agoa facility, Kenya has been unable to tap into the...

Kenya's exports to the United States rose 8 percent to 20.6 billion shillings ($268 million) in 2008, largely due to U.S. legislation to promote African trade, Kenya's trade minister said on Monday.The U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has granted duty-free access for many sub-Saharan African nations' products since 2000."Despite the problems we had here in Kenya, we did better than in 2007 with 20.6 billion shillings worth (of exports to the United States), up from 19.2 billion shillings in 2007," Amos Kimunya said, referring...

“Brother Barrack Admonishes and Encourages Africa” read one of the headline following President Barack Obama’s much-lauded speech in Ghana last weekend. No speech to Africa by any other old, white American leader could have ever elicited such a summary - can anyone imagine John McCain admonishing the Ghanaian parliament? But even as Ghanaians made quite the show of dancing in the streets and peddling truckloads of Obama merchandise, many said they were trying not to expect too much from the new president. Critics and activists have...

In a development that seems to lend credence to analysts' view that the United States (U.S.) might be looking beyond the strife-torn Middle-East for its energy needs, the U.S. crude oil import from African sources is on the upswing with Nigeria recording a 16.2 per cent rise in its crude export to the U.S. last year.In fact, according to a new report by the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce, other African oil producers even did better than Nigeria in exporting crude to the U.S.The report came ahead of the...

Madagascar's $600-million-a-year textile industry faces collapse if the United States suspends the Indian Ocean island from a trade deal for Africa over democracy concerns.The U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) allows many African nations to export goods to the United States without duty -- but it has conditions on good governance.Washington branded President Andry Rajoelina's seizure of power in March a coup and told him to make strides to restore constitutional order before the end of 2009.Failing that, AGOA may be suspended...

American President Barack Obama has described his visit to Ghana as a meeting of two allies without any hidden agenda.Responding to concerns that his visit could be in pursuit of American interests in Ghana's oil find or for the establishment of military base in Africa, he told the Daily Graphic exclusively in response to a questionnaire during his two-day visit to the country, "There is no hidden agenda here.""The United States and Ghana enjoyed strong relations long before oil was discovered in Ghana and long before the creation of the US...

The trade volume between Nigeria and the United States of America in 2008 was Monday put at $42.2 billion. Achike Udenwa, minister of commerce and industry, who disclosed this in Abuja during a technical cooperation seminar organised by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) in conjunction with the Federal Trade Commission of the United States of America, noted that Nigeria is the 14th largest goods trading partner of the US. He revealed that US exports to Nigeria include vehicles, machinery, IT software, electronic gadgets, toys, wheat,...

The United States operates four regional trade and competiveness hubs in sub-Saharan Africa. They aim to assist, enhance and broaden the flow of trade between the United States and the region, both inside and outside the terms of the historic African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The four trade hubs -- located in Ghana, Senegal, Botswana and Kenya -- provide information and technical expertise to enhance and expand bilateral trade between the United States and Africa. Nathan Van Dusen, an economist with Carana Corporation, which is...

Brazilian businesspeople may invest in industrial chicken production in Mozambique in order to meet domestic demand and supply the regional and international market (for example under AGOA) at competitive prices, Mozambican newspaper Notícias reported.With significant investment in the area of technology, Brazil in the last few years has become a benchmark in the world for production and export of chicken, and thus is believed that its experience could help to reduce problems in the market supply at competitive prices that is faced in...

The African Growth and Opportunity Act’ (AGOA), the free trade pact with the US provides preferential access to Sub-Saharan countries in to US markets till 2015 and also has special provisions for exports of textiles and apparels. This act was enacted to help these African countries open their economies and build free markets in the region. The main idea behind the act was to help these countries grow their economies, by opening up the biggest market in the world.Fibre2fashion spoke exclusively with Mr Endalkachew Sime, Secretary General...