WASHINGTON, USA – The United States Trade Representative (USTR) Michael Froman, last week announced new moves to ease trade between the US and the East African Community.

“This agreement will help us lift the burdens that trade barriers impose, unlocking opportunity on both our continents,” he said in Washington.

According to the USTR, trade of goods between the US and the five countries totaled $2.8 billion in 2014.

The agreement also establishes a new five-year, $64 million trade and investment hub in East Africa focused on broadly increasing exports under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), while expanding and diversifying regional agricultural trade and food security.

Froman said , “Today’s agreement is an important milestone for deepening what has already proven itself to be a promising and impactful partnership.”

Thursday’s deal will help the African nations further streamline the customs process, meet global standards on food protections and reduce other technical barriers to trade.

According to a release from the Office of the Trade Representative, during a summer 2013 trip to Africa, President Obama announced the Trade Africa initiative to promote US.-Africa trade and investment, with the starting point in East Africa.

With strides made there, the Obama administration wants to deepen that relationship by knocking down additional trade barriers in the region while expanding the U.S. reach to other African nations.

“We see this agreement and all our work with the EAC to date as an important steppingstone, not the final destination,” Froman said.

The EAC has been favourably cited for reducing transit times to six days from the previous 21 from Mombasa to Kigali, Rwanda.

That helped boost trade to $4.7 billion in 2013 within the five-nation bloc, up from $2.3 billion in 2005.

“Together, we can tackle more tasks, support more jobs, and unlock more opportunities for the American and African people alike,” Froman said.

The new EAC strategy also started a new commercial dialogue to develop public-private initiatives further bolster trade.

“The global economy is evolving and the U.S.-Africa economic relationship must evolve, too,” he said.

The move comes as the Obama administration and Congress are discussing a renewal and modernization of AGOA, which expires in September.

“Prompt renewal is critical because many businesses plan their orders six, even 12 months in advance, and waiting until the 11th hour to renew AGOA will result in jobs lost, factories closed, and investment deferred, all of which undermine our goal for a stronger US-Africa economic relationship,” Froman said.

Source: East African Business Week

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TradeMark Africa.