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Africa has generally ranked near the bottom of US foreign policy priorities. Historically, two-term presidents have waited until their second term to establish their legacies on the continent, and many one-term presidents have neglected it altogether. US President Donald J. Trump has surprised many by bucking this trend.  In December, US National Security Advisor John Bolton unveiled a formal strategy for Africa unveiled a formal strategy for Africa. The document was originally slated for public release but has...

The rise of the fast fashion industry in the past few years has brought in its wake a booming trade of second-hand clothing. Today, millions of people around the world donate clothes with the understanding that they will support the needy or will be resold in secondhand stores. But are increased imports into Africa of second-hand clothing from developed countries consistent with the contemporary agenda of African economies, which is to industrialize and add value, rather than to consume? This is at the heart of the recent trade dispute...

The AGOA.info Exporter Toolkit resources have been enhanced through the addition of brochures and infographics on AGOA-related subjects.  This includes many 'national' AGOA country brochures that provide an overview of a country's AGOA-related developments and trade performance.  Other themed brochures include those of a more technical nature (Rules of Origin, AGOA eligibility and review provisions), as well as more sector-focused publications, including on textiles and apparel, and on agriculture.  The brochures can be...

Tanzanian textile companies received a boost to their efforts to export products to the U.S. after attending a half-day workshop hosted by the USAID Hub. Fifteen Tanzanian design enterprises learned about U.S. market opportunities on January 15 in Dar es Salaam from Margaret Bishop, an expert in textile and apparel production and quality management. Ms. Bishop provided the companies with technical insights on U.S. home textile market trends, buyer expectations and product/color trends. This information will inform the companies' design,...

The USAID Hub’s lead African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) strategy consultant is in Ethiopia this week to gather supply-side information and conduct a sector analysis for a new Ethiopia National AGOA Strategy. The Ethiopian government requested the Hub to provide technical assistance on the Strategy, which will set strategic actions and targets for significant growth in exports from Ethiopia to the United States by 2025. The Hub began the strategy in October 2018 with a review of the macro-economic environment and Ethiopia’s trade...

Ethiopia's export under AGOA has jumped by 62 percent between October 2017 and September 2018. The country experienced the largest increase exports in the period under review, according to USAID East Africa Trade and Investment Hub. "If this growth continues, Ethiopia may quickly become the second or third largest exporter under AGOA in East Africa," the Hub said. East African countries supported by the USAID-Hub reached nearly one billion dollars in exports to the U.S. under AGOA in the period under review. This is a 17 percent rise...

Exports from East African countries to the US reached about $1 billion between October 2017 and September 2018, a 17 per cent increase from the same period the previous year. The United States Agency for International Development’s East Africa Trade and Investment Hub said apparel dominated the region’s sales at 84.4 per cent of exports. The Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) gives sub-Saharan Africa duty-free access to US markets for about 6,000 items. The East Africa Trade and Investment Hub said that the firms they supported...

Last week, the Trump administration launched an Africa policy that seeks both primacy and partnership on the continent. The administration’s efforts at partnership, especially as it relates to promoting U.S. business on the continent, are likely to be far more lasting and consequential. Ambassador John Bolton set the tone for the administration in a speech where he challenged African governments to choose the United States over China and Russia for their commercial, security, and political relationships. This throwback to...

If you care about Africa or work on the continent, the equivalent of Willy Wonka’s Golden Ticket last week was an invitation from the Heritage Foundation for the unveiling of the Trump Administration’s New Africa Strategy by U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton. The plan, in the works for one year, was a closely guarded secret. Congressional staff invited to the roll-out only received the White House fact sheet upon arrival at Heritage, and while the policy was “an intensive interagency process,” few outside of...

As delivered on December 13, 2018. Heritage Foundation, Washington, D.C. Well, Kim, thanks very much, and thanks to you and Kay for inviting me here. I’m delighted again to be here at the Heritage, an institution that really has contributed so much to the public policy debate for many decades now in the United States. And I’m particularly pleased to be here to unveil the Trump administration’s new Africa Strategy, which the President approved yesterday, and which the administration will begin executing immediately. This strategy...

Remarks by National Security Advisor Ambassador John R. Bolton on the Trump Administration’s New Africa Strategy I’m delighted again to be here at the Heritage, an institution that really has contributed so much to the public policy debate for many decades now in the United States. And I’m particularly pleased to be here to unveil the Trump administration’s new Africa Strategy, which the President approved yesterday, and which the administration will begin executing immediately. This strategy is the result of an intensive...

While friction over the ban of used clothing exports from the US to East Africa seems to have come to an end, some fundamental issues still remain, according to Shannon Brady and Sheng Lu from the University of Delaware. Their latest research throws up complex economic, social, legal and political factors linked with the trade in second-hand clothes and questions the effectiveness of preference programmes such as AGOA as a tool for economic development Back in March 2016, the East African Community (EAC) which includes Kenya, Rwanda,...

MEDIA ADVISORY | December 6, 2018  Telephonic Press Briefing with Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of African Affairs, Tibor P. Nagy, Jr. EVENT Please join us on Thursday, December 6, 2018 at 11:30 UTC| 13:30 SAST| 14:30 EAT for a telephonic press briefing with Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of African Affairs, Tibor P. Nagy, Jr. Assistant Secretary Nagy will speak to us from Nairobi, Kenya to discuss U.S. policy in Africa and outcomes of his current travel to the region. The...