AGOA

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has served as the cornerstone of the U.S.-Africa commercial relationship for more than two decades but it is set to expire on September 30, 2025. While the legislation’s unilateral trade preferences have provided economic benefits for countries across sub-Saharan Africa, AGOA as a whole remains underutilized. To ensure continuity in U.S-African trade ties, the United States must grapple with the legislation’s potential reauthorization now, with a particular focus on how the utilization of AGOA might be improved.

Just a renewal of AGOA won’t be enough to achieve this ambitious vision, though. Instead, the Biden administration should double-down on its partnership with AGOA beneficiaries and ensure that each country makes greater use of the program, including through National AGOA Strategies, in a manner that promotes regional and continental value chains.Continue Reading How the Biden Administration can Make AGOA More Effective

President Obama, on January 11, suspended the application of duty-free treatment to South Africa’s agricultural exports that come into the U.S. under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The suspension will take effect on March 15 if South Africa does not lower tariffs on American poultry products before then.
Continue Reading An End to the Never-Ending South African Poultry Dispute?

For years, many observers treated Africa’s plans for regional integration with a healthy dose of skepticism. Though the skepticism remains, what has changed is the wide-spread acknowledgement and elevated importance of regional economic integration to grow Africa’s economies, create jobs for its rapidly growing youth population, and improve lives. Last…
Continue Reading From the AGOA Forum in Gabon to the WTO Ministerial in Nairobi

Later this month, Gabon will host two major African investment forums: the AGOA Forum and the New York Forum AFRICA.

Established by the African Growth and Opportunity Act, the AGOA Forum is an annual gathering that brings together high-level African and U.S. government officials to discuss strengthening economic ties between…
Continue Reading Gabon To Host Back-to-Back African Investment Forums

It is a welcome development that the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has moved closer to reauthorization. However, much more can and should be done through AGOA to strengthen intellectual property (IP) rights in Africa, particularly in the continent’s creative sectors. Africa’s creative sectors have the potential to be…
Continue Reading AGOA Should Do More to Strengthen Intellectual Property in Africa’s Creative Sectors

On Thursday of last week and with a vote of 97-1, the U.S. Senate approved the “Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015,” which includes reauthorization of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). With this action, the Senate seeks to reaffirm the “centerpiece of trade relations between the United …
Continue Reading AGOA Moves Forward: Reviewing Last Week’s Reauthorization in the U.S. Senate

It is frequently said that investing in Africa is not for the faint-hearted.

It is less well appreciated that entering the U.S. market is not for the faint-hearted either, especially by those small and medium businesses in Africa that AGOA was designed to benefit.

For the last 24 months, the…
Continue Reading Why AGOA Should be Extended for 15 years: An Ethiopian Case Study

The U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means is currently considering the renewal and strengthening of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).  AGOA is the cornerstone of the U.S.-African commercial relationship, and the African Union (AU) has called for a 15 year extension of the Act, from 2015 to…
Continue Reading Strengthening U.S.-Africa Trade and Investment

On August 4-6, President Obama will welcome over forty-five African heads of state and government to Washington D.C. for the first-ever U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit.  The U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit reflects the administration’s desire to forge a deeper relationship with African governments especially as it concerns  trade and investment,  Africa’s security and…

Continue Reading U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit: A Historic Opportunity