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AGOA: The United States Trade Act with Sub-Saharan Africa

AGOA: The United States Trade Act with Sub-Saharan Africa

Released Thursday, 26th December 2013
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AGOA: The United States Trade Act with Sub-Saharan Africa

AGOA: The United States Trade Act with Sub-Saharan Africa

AGOA: The United States Trade Act with Sub-Saharan Africa

AGOA: The United States Trade Act with Sub-Saharan Africa

Thursday, 26th December 2013
Good episode? Give it some love!
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imageThe AGOA ACT was established in the year 2000 by the outgoing Clinton Administration, the act is some what of a preferential treatment of over 6,000 African made products, with some special tariff reduction for certain sector like the garment industry, agriculture and horticultural products. The AGOA ACT which has benefited some African countries notably Kenya, Lesotho, Nigeria, Angola, Ethiopia and South Africa to name a few is clear that the agreement has its merit, but not all 47 signatories benefited from the agreement. The agreement by the United States was somewhat of a unilateral trade policy to open up free markets in the sub-sharahan African. There are certain political and economic conditions applied to make sure governments stay in accordance to US demands to receive the preferential trade to import products in the United States market. Several members countries throughout the AGOA lifeline has lost and re-gained the membership after correcting the mistake by the governments or former government. The trade act expires in September 2015 while some countries, the ones who benefit are lobbying for the extension while others ask for a more balance trade policy.The United States being the dominant partner of course, which boast the largest consumer market in the World and arguably the World most powerful nation uses the act to import natural resources, oil representing 88% of the total trade followed by diamonds and other strategic raw materials from the African Continent. Critics of The AGOA ACT point out the latter being a one-sided deal and that Africa should lobby for more FDI, industrial and technological advancement rather than the sole exporting of natural resources from the Continent. The main beneficiaries of the AGOA are resource rich extractive economies such as Angola and Nigeria which are number one and two in oil exports. At AtlanticRimTrade we believe that a win-win relationship for both sides can bear fruit if Africa's industrial might be upgraded and trade policies enacted to tapped the United States large consumer market. The continuous extractive policy of both governments suit only one player and that is the mighty United States. It will be interesting to see in 2015, if any or a combination of African nations call for a new trade relationship between the two. This will be an important move that could guide trade relations between Africa and United States of America in the foreseeable future.
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