Politics
Will the Sun Set on AGOA?
Apparel and footwear, but especially footwear, are among the U.S. industries that have benefited most from the African Growth and Opportunity Act. Now that AGOA is about to expire, stakeholders want the law renewed in a hurry. They met Thursday in Washington, D.C. to talk about it ahead of Barack Obama’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in August.
AGOA, which is up for renewal in 2015, allows products made in Africa with African textiles to come into the U.S. duty-free. Signed into law in 2000, it was enacted to expand U.S. trade and investment in sub-Saharan Africa, home to some of the fastest-growing economies in the world.
Some U.S. companies interested in doing business in Africa are reluctant to do so over uncertainty about whether AGOA will be renewed. It could be hurting business between the U.S. and Africa, industry stakeholders say. AGOA was be the topic of discussion Thursday in Washington, D.C. at the Africa-America Institute’s Conversations on Africa Series. The inaugural discussion was set to focus on the potential of AGOA reauthorization in strengthening human capital in Africa.
Panel discussions offered a preview into trade and investment issues to be addressed at the White House’s upcoming U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit. Steve Lamar was scheduled as one of the panelists. He is executive vice president of American Apparel & Footwear Association, a 530-member U.S. trade association. Members do business in Lesotho, Swaziland, Bostwana, South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya and Madagascar, among others.
Lamar served for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Botswana and now he comes up with lobbying strategies on international trade, labor policy, customs procedures, environment, judicial policy, product safety, and procurement. In an interview, Lamar stated, “We represent an industry that does a lot of work in Africa, that employs a lot of people in Africa. Part of the story of AGOA is the story of our work in Africa.”
AGOA and trade with Africa are synonymous for the vast majority of the U.S. apparel and footwear industries doing business on the continent, Lamar said. “It’s critical that the renewal happens. For a lot of our members, without that duty preference (that AGOA allows) it doesn’t make Africa competitive.”
The Apparel & Footwear Association conducted a member survey in 2013. Half the respondents said they were already doing business in Africa. The other half said they were holding back. One of the things holding them back is worrying that AGOA won’t renew, said Marie D’Avignon, manager of government relations for the association.
Other benefits besides AGOA to doing business in Africa
Sure, there are other benefits to doing business in Africa besides AGOA, D’Avignon said in an interview with AFKInsider. “A lot of companies produce in Lesotho because they want to access the growing South African market,” she said. “The Gap is there because they like the idea of doing business in Africa. They want to be socially responsible. Beyoncé wanted all her tour T-shirts made in Africa.
