News - Agoa.info - African Growth and Opportunity Act

Hello, America! USAID, direct flights to increase AGOA exports to US

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) Hub will from November 2018 to March 2019 provide direct support in the audit and Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) certification process. Already, USAID is helping companies in the East African region become more export competitive. WRAP is a minimum standard for social compliance where US textile and apparel buyers procure products from ethical and socially compliant companies. The audit support comes at a time when direct flights from Nairobi to New York are...

19 October 2018 | Njenga Hakeenah

Nigeria: 'Many manufacturers don’t know much about AGOA' — NEPC

The Executive Director, Nigeria Export Promotion Council, Mr Segun Awolowo, has said many indigenous industrialists and manufacturers do not know much about what it takes to export under the African Growth and Opportunity Act. He also stated that value addition and manufacturing of world-class products would enhance their global competitiveness. Awolowo spoke through the Head of AGOA Desk, NEPC Zonal Office, Mrs Bolanle Emmanuel, during a workshop on ‘Understanding AGOA’s procedures and documentation’ on Thursday in...

14 October 2018 | Success Nwogu

Kenya looks beyond apparel to double earnings from AGOA

Kenya is betting on bigger shipments of processed food, tea and coffee to help double its export earnings from the US free-trade deal in five years’ time — marking a shift from its long dependence on apparels. Several Kenyan products, notably apparel and agricultural produce, are big beneficiaries of the preferential African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) arrangement, which has lifted import duty on all eligible products and granted preferential market access upon compliance with Rules of Origin. Apparels have long dominated as...

30 September 2018

2019 Mandela Washington fellowship for young African leaders

Applications for the 2019 Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders are now open. This program for young professionals aged 25-35 brings them together with like-minded change agents from all over sub-Saharan Africa. Fellows attend a six-week training course at a top university in the United States focused on one of three leadership tracks: Business, Civic Engagement, or Public Management. Interested candidates can learn more about the Fellowship and apply here: bit.ly/ ApplyYALI2019. Applications are due by...

28 September 2018

'Protecting South Africa from US anti-trade action'

South Africa may well be a “non-combatant” and an “innocent bystander” in the economic warfare which US President Donald Trump has launched against America’s major economic rivals, as trade and industry minister Rob Davies has frequently complained. But it can and should act at least to mitigate the fallout from the gathering global contest, which now also involves Iran. Six months ago Davies first complained that SA was suffering “collateral damage” from the trade war which Trump had launched mainly...

20 September 2018 | Peter Fabricius

AGOA expo to strengthen US-Africa trade ties in textiles

The 6-day AGOA Expo and Trade Fair from September 25 in New York is a business platform committed to celebrate US-Africa cooperation, strengthen bilateral trade relations, promote AGOA key export products and investment opportunities. It is an opportunity for US companies to expand business or introduce new products, services in the 40 African countries. The trade fair will give opportunity to all beneficiaries of the trade agreement to promote their business including various activities including AGOA Key Exports Products...

18 September 2018

Ghana: Exports under AGOA hit US$748m in 2017

Renewed confidence in the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has resulted in an upward trend, with the country’s trade under the programme registering a total of US$748million last year, according to the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI).The surge in performance reflects the collective efforts by government and other stakeholders including the chamber in strengthening the country’s exports.After reaching its peak in 2011 with exports earnings of US$779 million and subsequent decline in 2012, when it recorded...

17 September 2018

SA poultry industry takes on US chicken quota as court case brews

The South African Poultry Association (SAPA) wants government to review the quota of US poultry imports, following the imposition of tariffs on local aluminium and steel products. In court papers filed in the North Gauteng Court, the organisation argues that US tariffs on SA steel and aluminium exports have affected the benefits that South Africa enjoyed under the preferential trade deal. Under the deal, the US is allowed to export 65 000 tons of frozen bone-in chicken portions free of anti-dumping duty into South Africa. SAPA...

17 September 2018 | Sibongile Khumalo

South Africa: We will all be losers if we lose AGOA, Parliament hears

Setting aside the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) will have dire consequences, members of Parliament heard on Thursday. Department of Trade and Industry (dti) Director General Lionel October was sharing developments on trade relations between SA and the US with the portfolio committee on trade and industry. The South African Poultry Association (SAPA) has brought forward a court applicationto have the entire AGOA agreement (Ed: on poultry) set aside, arguing that the US reneged on the agreement. This is in context of...

13 September 2018 | Lameez Omarjee

US apparel buyer linked to sourcing opportunities in Madagascar

On August 26-30, the USAID East African Trade and Investment Hub conducted a buyer mission to Antananarivo, Madagascar for a large publicly listed U.S. apparel company. The U.S buyer engaged with apparel companies in Madagascar and identified several sourcing opportunities that could support its production of apparel and related fashion goods across several top brands. “Madagascar’s private sector is recognizing and fully embracing the longevity from investing in the value chain, creating a sustainable footprint, and embracing...

05 September 2018

South Africa: 'US confirms it’s not using AGOA as leverage over land expropriation'

US officials have made no link between SA’s plan to expropriate land without compensation and the country’s access to trade benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), trade and industry minister Rob Davies said. One of the conditions for being eligible for Agoa, which favours 39 African nations by eliminating import levies on more than 7,000 products, is the protection of private property rights. Trade union Solidarity has warned that the ANC’s plan to change the constitution to allow expropriation without...

05 September 2018 | RENÉ VOLLGRAAFF

Kenyan government presents USAID Hub-supported AGOA Strategy to USTR

On August 28, 2018, Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Industry, Trade and Cooperatives Peter Munya (represented by Trade Principal Secretary Dr. Chris Kiptoo, pictured on left) delivered Kenya’s National African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Strategy and Action Plan 2018-2023 to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in Washington, DC. The Strategy, which aims to double Kenya’s U.S. export value from $552 million in 2016 to $1,105 million in 2023, was officially launched on July 31, 2018 and developed through USAID Hub...

31 August 2018

Warmer Kenya-US relations good for trade and investment

The meeting earlier this week between President Uhuru Kenyatta and his United States counterpart Donald Trump should, hopefully, cement strategic interests between the two countries. It signals how much bilateral relations have warmed up since the infamous “choices have consequences” warning by a senior US government officer before the 2013 elections. For Kenya, enhancing trade and investment should be at the core of the newfound relations. It is the key to expanding opportunities for economic growth and creating jobs for the youth,...

30 August 2018 | PETER WARUTERE

Liberia: Twelve companies selected to present at AGOA Expo and trade fair in US

Twelve Liberian companies have received sponsorship to travel to the African Growth and Opportunity Act Expo and Trade Fair in New York. The companies received pledges of US$2,500 each during a Made in Liberia contest held on Monday, August 27 where entrepreneurs had to pitch their products. The fair is scheduled to take place September 25-30. The Made in Liberia Pitching Contest organized by the Liberia Chamber of Commerce and the Ezzat N. Eid Foundation as a fundraising event aiming to help Liberian entrepreneurs who were producing...

30 August 2018 | Zeze Ballah

SA farmers play 'chicken' with US tariffs

Herman Pretorius is just the kind of white South African farmer U.S. President Donald Trump expressed concern for when he barged into the country's delicate land reform debate by ordering an investigation into the "large-scale killing of farmers". But for the greying, bespectacled 58-year-old, wading knee-deep through some 35,000 chickens at his isolated homestead in South Africa's North West province, it's the United States and its cheap poultry exports that are a threat. "We cannot compare our chickens with theirs. The price difference...

29 August 2018 | JOE BAVIER

Kenya, US establish trade investment working group

Kenya and United States of America have established a trade and investment working group to explore ways of deepening business ties between the two countries. The United States Trade Representative, Robert Lighthizer and the Kenyan Industry, Trade and Cooperatives Cabinet Secretary, Peter Munya jointly announced establishment of the partnership in the US on Sunday. Under the Trade and Investment Working Group, the two countries would work together to explore a mutually beneficial trade and investment framework to guide the...

28 August 2018 | Bernadette Khaduli

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