Tadias Magazine
Events News
Published: Sunday, July 11, 2013
Addis Ababa (TADIAS) – Ethiopia is hosting the 12th annual African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum this weekend in Addis Ababa featuring business leaders and government officials representing the United States and several African countries. The Forum that alternates between Washington, D.C. and an eligible country from the continent every other year, is being held in Ethiopia for the first time.
The AGOA forum, that was singed into law by President Bill Clinton in 2000, is designed to increase business to business relations between the U.S. and African countries through duty-free export of certain African products to the United States. Last year, 39 AGOA-eligible sub-Saharan African countries “exported nearly $35 billion in products to the United States,” a spokesperson for U.S. State Department said. “AGOA provides incentives for African countries to improve their investment climates, reduce corruption, respect human and labor rights and the rule of law, improve infrastructure and harmonize trade standards to help them become more competitive in the global marketplace.” Previous gatherings of the Forum had been organized in Mauritius, Senegal, Ghana, Kenya and Zambia.
The press release added: “The 2013 AGOA Forum will highlight the progress achieved since the Act’s inception in 2000 and launch a dialogue on the future of United States-sub-Saharan Africa trade and economic cooperation. These discussions will pave the way for the Obama Administration to work with Congress and other stakeholders on AGOA’s extension after September 30, 2015, when the current Act is due to expire.”
This year’s forum opened in Ethiopia on Friday, August 9th under the theme “Sustainable Transformation through Trade and Technology,” in conjunction with a business conference spearheaded by the Corporate Council on Africa that concludes on Sunday, June 11th. The event will be followed by the Ministerial Forum scheduled to take place on Monday August 12th and Tuesday, August 13th.
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You can learn more about the forum at www.agoa2013ethiopia.org.