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AGOA ends with calls to protect Africa
from Asia
Accra, July 20, Ghanadot - The United States government, at
the closing session of the 6th AGOA meeting in Accra on
Thursday, was urged to create mechanisms within the Africa
Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) to protect Africa from the
stiff export competition from Asia.
Dr. Rosa M. Whitaker, President and CEO of the US-based
Whitaker Group, presenting a paper on behalf of the US
private sector noted that exports from China, India and
Indonesia combined in the US market was higher than that of
the whole of Africa.
"This calls for effective protection mechanism for poor
African countries within the AGOA initiative - AGOA is worth
protecting and we need to create a very sound trade
environment to protect AGOA," she said.
AGOA would last till 2015. Out
of 6,400 product range open for export from Africa under
AGOA on a tariff-free, duty-free basis, only 3,800 were
being exported currently.
President John Agyekum Kufuor had called for an extension of
the period but the US had not said whether they would extend
or not.
Mr. Alan Kyeremanten, Minister
of Trade, Industry, Private Sector and President’s Special
Initiative, noted that AGOA was an instrument for
stimulating economic growth in Africa, saying, "it promises
to be one of the most powerful tools for economic
reconstruction and revival in Africa."
He said the tripartite nature of the 6th meeting,
characterised by the inclusion of civil society, private and
government was to shift focus from a government to
government initiative, saying that it contributed to the
rich discussion during the forum.
He praised the organizers from both the Ghana and US sides
for their hard work.
Kenya offered to host the 3rd Ministerial Consultative
Meeting next year, while by tradition the US would host the
7th AGOA Forum also next year.
The meeting brought together at least 2,000 African and US
state actors, private sector players and civil society to
discuss ways of improving the benefits of AGOA since its
launch in 2001.
In calling for protection for Africa., Dr. Whitaker said the
emphasis of AGOA should not only be on Less Developed
Countries (LDCs), but ought to be extended to include the
AGOA related Organisation of Economic Co-operation
Development (OECDs), which was committed to assisting LDCs
to face economic, social and governance challenges.
She was of the view that such a move would help cushion
Africa from the stiff competition from the Asian giants.
Dr. Whitaker also recommended that countries like China,
India and Brazil, who were major exporters to the US, should
be asked to provide AGOA type gestures to Africa to enable
the continent to share in the benefits they have derived
from the American market.
She said the US government and private sector should help
with Africa with capacity building and also support the
continent to process at home more of its raw materials to
ensure that the continent exported more value added
products.
Ms. Vernice Guthrie, a Representative of the US Civil
Society, called for the removal of subsidies on US-made
products that compete with the 6,400 products under AGOA to
give Africa a fair competition in the states.
She said the focus of AGOA should ultimately be to empower
communities in Africa, adding that, in that regard there was
need to lay emphasis on public awareness about AGOA in
African communities through very open information sharing.
Ms Guthrie also called for financial support from both
African and the US governments to AGOA related civil society
organisations to enable them play their role in ensuring
that policies detrimental to African economies were exposed
and good ones promoted through public discourse and
education.
Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Representative of the African private
sector, noted that the US and the western media had over the
years given Africa very bad publicity, saying that to
protect Africa from the unfavourable world economic order it
was imperative for the US and African private sectors to
team up with the media to change the wrong perception about
Africa.
Ms Susan Schwab, US Trade Representative and Leader of the
US delegation, said AGOA represented US commitment to Africa
with respect to deepening US/African trade relations.
She noted that the 6th meeting had been different in terms
of its focus on problem solving more than raising issues.
"We have looked at ways to provide support for Small and
Medium scale Enterprises (SMEs), provide trade
infrastructure, standards, technical assistance and capacity
building among others so that we both reap the full benefit
of AGOA," she said.
She assured African states that the US government and
private sector placed priority on AGOA and would ensure that
in the coming years the commitment would be strengthened and
deepened.
Source GNA
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