Ethiopian Minister of Trade and Industry Girma Biru to Co-Chair Annual Agoa Session

Girma Biru to Co-Chair Annual Agoa Session

The Reporter (Addis Ababa)
NEWS
14 July 2007
Posted to the web 14 July 2007

By Hayal Alemayehu

Trade and Industry Minister Girma Biru will co-chair a session at the sixth African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) forum scheduled to be held in Accra, Ghana, from July 18-19, it was learnt.

The minister and two high-ranking trade officials will next week leave for Accra to participate at the conference, which is expected to witness the attendance of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

This year’s AGOA forum, which will run under the theme: “As Trade Grows, Africa Prosper: Optimizing Benefits under AGOA,” aims at strengthening the partnership for economic reforms and development between the United States and the thirty eight African nations eligible for the Act, according to the event organizers.

Of the major discussion topics to be deliberated upon at the forum, Girma Biru will co-chair the session entitled “Facilitating agricultural trade and development under AGOA,” which marks the significance the sector plays in Ethiopia’s economy.

The other priority agendas of the conference include: Taking stalk of progress on AGOA implementation, broadening opportunities under AGOA, addressing health challenges to Africa’s productivity under AGOA, enhancing supply capacity of small and medium enterprises under AGOA, and US and government technical assistance programs.

“The forum is an important part of AGOA because it represents an ongoing dialogue between Africa and the United States to ensure that the benefits that accrue from AGOA are realized,” Todd Moss, US Deputy Assistance Secretary of State for African Affairs, was quoted as saying on Monday in Washington.

Moss will join other officials, trade experts, and business executives at the forum in offering tips and advice on how to gain access to the American market. The forum will also include a meeting of finance, economic and trade ministers as well as separate sessions hosted by civil society and business groups, according to the organizers of the event.

Since AGOA passed into law in May 2000, Africa’s exports to the US have nearly tripled, according to a study released two weeks ago by William Jackson, Director for African Affairs Office of the US Trade Representative. However, Ethiopia’s experience under AGOA fared poorly compared to the other thirty seven AGOA eligible African countries.

Ethiopia’s export to the US under AGOA fetched slightly over seven million USD in 2006, an amount that barely counts compared to the 44.2 billion USD the thirty eight AGOA eligible countries shared from AGOA exports (to the US) in the same year, the study indicated. Ethiopia’s exports under AGOA has, nonetheless, been exhibiting a growth despite the amount remaining lower compared to the other African nations. Likewise, Ethiopia’s overall exports to the US have over the last three years been surging by 20 million USD on average to stand at 81.1 million USD in 2006. Trade transactions between the two countries favor the US, where Ethiopia exhibited a 54.5 million USD trade deficit with the US in 2006.

Currently, Nigeria, South Africa, Angola, Gabon and Chad are the top five beneficiaries of AGOA.

This year’s AGOA forum is assumed to better attract the attention of the world, with Condoleezza Rice expected to deliver a keynote speech at the conference. Scheduled to visit Israel and the West Bank during a five-day trip, Rice will take a stop in Accra for talks on the African trade, according to the State Department. This will be Rice’s first trip to Ghana.