South Africa to Host AGOA Forum

South Africa will host the 20th African Growth and Opportunity Act forum in Johannesburg this November 2-4.

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and South African Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Ebrahim Patel announced the date following a meeting Sept. 20.

The forum – mandated as part of the AGOA trade preferences program – brings together the governments of the United States and AGOA-eligible countries, as well as representatives from key regional economic organizations, the private sector, civil society and labor.

Over the course of the event, participants will engage in discussions on how to strengthen trade and investment ties between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa and how to promote resilient, sustainable, and inclusive economic growth and development, according to USTR.

The Forum will also feature a “Made in Africa Exhibition” which will showcase regional value chains on the continent.

AGOA currently is set to expire in 2025 and beneficiary countries eyeing an extension. Minister Patel said that “AGOA has helped to promote the export of African goods to the United States,
and we believe there is scope to deepen its impact on African industrialization. An extension of AGOA beyond 2025 will promote inward investment in Africa and provide benefits to both the
United States and African countries. It will also support our efforts to increase growth through the African Continental Free Trade Area that will cover 54 countries and 1.4 billion people.”

USTR Tai – who will attend the forum – said she hopes to opportunities to make AGOA “more transformative.”

AGOA provides eligible sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the US market for over 1,800 products, in addition to the more than 5,000 products that are eligible for duty-free access under the Generalized System of Preferences program.

To qualify for AGOA benefits, countries must establish or make continual progress toward establishing a market-based economy, the rule of law, political pluralism and the right to due process. Countries must eliminate barriers to US trade and investment, enact policies to reduce poverty, combat corruption and protect human rights.