Africa Growth and Opportunity Act has Increased and Diversified U.S.- Africa Trade
The White House has announced that the fourth U.S.-Sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum (also known as the AGOA Forum) will be held in Dakar, Senegal in July 2005. Senior Administration officials from the United States are expected to join government ministers from the 37 AGOA-eligible countries at this event. Hundreds of U.S. and African businesses and organizations will participate in the private sector and civil society dialogues to be held at the AGOA Forum, which will run from July 18 to 20.
The AGOA Forum is an essential element of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, a U.S. law designed to substantially expand access to U.S. markets for beneficiary countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Thirty-seven of the 48 Sub-Saharan African countries are currently eligible for AGOA, including Senegal.
This will be the second AGOA Forum held in Africa, following the first AGOA Forum in Mauritius during 2002. The theme of this year’s AGOA Forum is "Expanding and Diversifying Trade to Promote Growth and Competitiveness." The three fora will feature a mixture of featured speakers, workshops tackling practical aspects of increasing African exports to the United States, exhibitions, and other events. In addition to trade topics and AGOA, there will be sessions on the Millennium Challenge Account, HIV/AIDS and economic growth, transportation, and other issues. Further information about this year’s AGOA Forum can be found on the Internet at these sites; www.agoaforum.org and www.agoa.gov.
On May 19, President George W. Bush submitted to Congress the 2005 Comprehensive Report on U.S. Trade and Investment Policy for Sub-Saharan Africa and Implementation of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which reports on the progress of AGOA implementation and general trade and investment developments between the United States and Africa.
According to the report, AGOA has been a measurable success, increasing America’s two-way trade with sub-Saharan Africa and diversifying the range of products being traded.
In 2004, U.S. exports to sub-Saharan Africa increased 25 percent from 2003, to $8.6 billion. AGOA imports were $26.6 billion in 2004, an increase of 88 percent over 2003. Non-oil AGOA imports totaled $3.5 billion, an increase of 22 percent from 2003.
In July 2004, President Bush signed into law the AGOA Acceleration Act of 2004. This legislation extends AGOA's authorization until 2015 (including its special third-country fabric provision until 2007), mandates increased AGOA-related technical assistance, and amends some technical provisions of the Act.
The United States devoted $181 million to trade capacity- building activities in sub-Saharan Africa in fiscal year 2004, up 36 percent from the previous year.
