News Search

Speech by Thomas A. Shannon, Jr., Under Secretary for Political Affairs, U.S. Institute of Peace, Washington, DC September 13, 2017 Introduction Good morning. Thank you President Lindborg for your very kind and generous introduction. To you and to Ambassador Carson I am grateful for the invitation to participate in this important and timely symposium. It is always a pleasure to cross 23rd street and leave behind the 1950s federal architecture of the State Department for the soaring beauty of the United States...

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) was signed into law by President Clinton in May 2000 with the objective of expanding U.S. trade and investment with sub-Saharan Africa, to stimulate economic growth, to encourage economic integration, and to facilitate sub-Saharan Africa’s integration into the global economy. The Act establishes the annual U.S.-sub-Saharan Africa Economic Cooperation Forum (known as the AGOA Forum) to promote high-level dialogue on trade and investment-related issues. At the centre of AGOA are substantial...

Mauritania has denied access to a group of American anti-slavery activists on a mission to West African nations, on grounds that their plans conflicted with Mauritanian law and had not been approved through proper channels. That group has nonetheless continued on their mission in Dakar, Senegal. “We are engaged in this work to show solidarity and support for those working against slavery and its legacy – and to strengthen partnerships,” said Jonathan Jackson, the national spokesman for the Rainbow PUSH...

Messe Frankfurt, the third largest trade show organiser in the world, announced on Friday that it will be taking over the South African-based trade shows Source Africa and ATF (Apparel, Textile & Footwear). Messe Frankfurt takes over from LTE, which has organised of Source Africa and ATF in the past. LTE has been organising events in the clothing and textile industry for more than 25 years.   According to William Scalco, a partner in LTE, the aim of Source Africa and ATF has always been to grow local manufacturing in the industry...

The government of Rwandan has opened talks with the United States on the review of the American Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA) in a bid to ensure continued duty-free access to the US market. In July this year, the Americans began an out of cycle review on the eligibility of Rwanda and other East African Community partner states following a move by the region to phase out and eventually ban import of second hand clothes. This move was aimed at supporting the regional textile industry and preserving the dignity of the East African...

The Amalgamated Trade Union of Swaziland (ATUSWA) representing 9 000 workers in the textile and apparel industry, the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA) representing 40 000 workers and 16 affiliated unions, and the IndustriALL Global Union representing 50 million workers in 140 countries met in Manzini, Swaziland on the 29th of August 2017 to discuss the status of the United States Trade Act – the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) – eligibility for Swaziland. With ATUSWA and TUCOSWA having been registered, and some...

US producers undershot their AGOA quota in 2016-17, as they struggled to build relationships with SA importers, many of whom lack experience and finance.  US poultry producers nearly reached their full 65,000 ton quota of exports to SA under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) in the year to end-March. However the start to the current year had been slow, the president of the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council (Usapeec), James Sumner, said on Tuesday on the sidelines of the biggest bi-annual conference in Brazil for the...

Representatives of the Congress of the United States have reaffirmed the bi-partisan commitment in Congress to a ‘sustained and strong’ relationship between the US and Ghana; and with Africa in general. Senator Chris Coons, a Junior Senator from Delaware, who is leading a seven-member Congressional delegation on a four-nation African tour, said they recognised the uncertainty around the world on whether or not the US would continue and sustain its commitments and leadership under the current President Donald Trump. Speaking during a...

The US Embassy’s outgoing Economic Counsellor, Laird Treiber, says there has been a steady stream of American investment into South Africa during his three-year tour and that, notwithstanding the current hiatus in investment activity, economic relations are poised to expand again, owing to the strongly complementary profiles of the two economies. In an interview with Engineering News Online ahead of his departure in mid-September, Treiber expressed optimism about future economic relations between the US and South Africa. He sees...

Donald Trump administration trade officials are likely to rule that three East African countries are violating eligibility terms for the US preferential trade programme for Africa, a lobbyist for Kenya warned on Friday. “The stars are aligned” for such a ruling before the end of the year, said Washington based attorney Paul Ryberg, an expert on the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa). Mr Ryberg has been retained by both the Kenya Ministry of Industry, Trade and Cooperation and the Kenya Association of Manufacturers to lobby on...

As the U.S. continues its wholesale review of all trade agreements and preference programs—including the African Growth and Opportunity Act—it seems to still be building up on the AGOA program that’s so far still set to run through 2025. Last month, the United States Trade Representative said Togo is now eligible to enjoy trade benefits under AGOA for textile and apparel products. A statement in the Federal Register (see document link alongside) said: “…Togo has adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent...

Despite duty free access to the United States (US) market, exports from Botswana have virtually dried up due to inadequate awareness of the African Growth Opportunities Act (AGOA) programme and the high cost of compliance with technical regulations, standards and quality certification. From the peak of exports worth around $17 million in 2011, which were dominated by textiles, exports under the AGOA pact to the US in 2016 were at a paltry $4 million. Constraints limiting Botswana from taking advantage of this preferential trade arrangement...

US labour unions cite Mauritania’s unwillingness to act on slavery as Trump administration is urged to deny country duty-free exports. The routine abuse of thousands of enslaved Mauritanians, including rape, beatings and unpaid labour, should prevent the African republic from receiving US trade benefits, American labour unions have said. Mauritania, which has one of the highest rates of modern-day slavery in the world and has been roundly criticised for its poor human rights record, is currently on a list of countries that benefit from...

The Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC) has said that Nigerian exporters are not taking full advantage of opportunities offered by the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). President of NACC, Chief Olabintan Famutimi, disclosed this at a Roundtable discussion while playing host to Deputy Assistant Secretary, US Commercial Service for Middle East and Africa, Seward Jones. He said: “Nigeria is not taking full advantage of AGOA. There is lack of information and the culprits are usually the people in government. AGOA is a trade...

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) National Response Strategy, which was developed through the assistance of the USAID Southern Africa Trade and Investment Hub, will be launched at the beginning of next month. The strategy would help local businesses grow by taking advantage of AGOA provision of duty-free exports to the United States of America (USA) with the hub’s experts working directly with the private sector to improve productivity and facilitate robust regional trade and global market access. The strategy would focus on...