Spotlight on trade Act renewal at the 2024 AGOA Forum in DC
The trade legislation known as AGOA is the focus of discussions this week in Washington, DC between senior U.S. officials and Africa trade ministers, along with key regional economic organizations, labor and civil society groups and private sector representatives.
The African Growth and Opportunity Act, which extends duty-free treatment to goods from eligible sub-Saharan African countries, was first enacted in 2000 and renewed by Congress in 2015 with the to create jobs in Africa and the United States while promoting economic growth across the continent.
This year's meeting, a annual gathering mandated by the Act, kicked off Wednesday with a Civil Society and Organized Labor Forum and a Private Sector Forum. With legislation's expiration approaching - in September 2025 – the urgency for Congress to act is permeating the session taking place in Washington, DC.
"I call on Congress to quickly reauthorize and modernize this landmark Act," President Biden said in a statement "For more than two decades, the bipartisan African Growth and Opportunity Act has formed the bedrock of America's economic partnership with African nations."
Speakers at the Private Sector session - hosted by the U.S. Institute of Peace, the Corporate Council on Africa and the U.S. Department of Commerce - echoed the President's appeal appealed to Congress to update and extend the law. Keynoting the event to underline administration engagement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said AGOA "has let entrepreneurs expand to new markets to grow their businesses" and "has created tens of thousands of good jobs across our nations – from Portland, Oregon to Port Louis, Mauritius." He said the administration is committed to "modernizing AGOA," reflect changes in economies and international markets since the law was passed. "We see value in an AGOA that is agile, that's adaptable, that's capable of driving trade forward in a dynamic environment."
U.S. Trade Representative Katherin Tai in her welcoming remarks stressed the need to make AGOA "more responsive to more of today’s challenges" singling out supply chain fragility and the climate crisis. For the "next iteration of AGOA, she said more voices must be incorporated, "especially women, youth, smaller companies, and the African Diaspora."
British Robinson, who heads Prosper Africa, pointed to the recently concluded $56m South African table grape deal as an example of the vital role that facilitation plays in ensuring that AGOA has the greatest impact. Her office is tasked with coordinating the efforts of 17 U.S. government agencies to promote trade and investment with the 32 AGOA-eligible countries in sub Saharan Africa.
During the Civil Society and Organized Labor Forum at the Wilson Center, former U.S. Ambassador to South Africa Patrick Gaspard, said the way AGOA is implemented is crucial. He now heads the Center for American Progress, which released an in-depth analysis entitled "AGOA Reauthorization Offers an Opportunity for Expanded Commitments to Development, Labor, and Climate in Sub-Saharan Africa.
"To be successful it's clear that we need more foreign direct investment in sub-Saharan Africa" Gaspar said at the labor panel he moderated. "But more investment does not necessarily lead to creation of good jobs."
"Worker rights and collective bargaining have to be the basis to ensuring we can promote development," Zingiswa Losi, president of the South African labor confederation Cosatu, told the session, according to posts on X by the U.S.-based international worker rights organization Solidarity Center.
Along with the pressing deadline for passage, the shape of the new legislation is a prime topic for debate. A number of enhancements have been suggested for the bill that was introduced in April by Senators Chris Coons (Democrat-Delaware) and Jim Risch (Republican-Idaho) - S.4110 - the African Growth and Opportunity Act Renewal and Improvement Act of 2024.
Among the issues raised in those discussions is how to boost both the flow of critical minerals from Africa and the benefits to Africa from that trade. Another is whether AGOA might somehow support the burgeoning IT and fintech sectors across Africa.
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