Trade with sub-Saharan Africa: African Growth & Opportunity Act Compared to Other Countries Trade Preference Programs

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) is a nonreciprocal trade preference program that provides duty-free treatment to U.S. imports of certain products from eligible sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. There are 49 candidate SSA countries with 39 currently eligible for the preference benefits. Congress first authorised AGOA in 2000 to encourage export-led growth and economic development in SSA and improve U.S. economic relations with the region. Its current authorisation expired on September 30, 2015. Bills to renew the preference program were introduced in the House and Senate on April 17 and April 20. This book seeks to inform the discussion on the potential reauthorisation of AGOA through analysis of the components of the AGOA legislation; U.S. import trends associated with AGOA; the impact of AGOA on African economies and U.S.-Africa trade; and the issues surrounding the reauthorisation process. The book also compares AGOA with selected countries'' trade preference programs in terms of key characteristics and performance, and examines AGOA countries'' participation in trade negotiations. See more