Bush adds his stamp of approval to Agoa

Tariff preference valid for a year THE US president, George W Bush, has just appended his presidential seal of approval to the list of 35 nations in sub-Saharan Africa which will be eligible for duty-free entry to the US for their exports of goods detailed in the African Growth and Opportunities Act (Agoa). This, Riaan de Lange, head of Deloitte & Touche's international trade division told FTW, was the presidential signature being added to a list already approved both by the House and the Senate late last year. The AGOA-approved status, he added, was designed to offer what the White House termed "important opportunities in fighting poverty and fostering development" to the eligible players. This tariff preference will now remain in place for the next year, said a White House announcement, before a further annual review is made. The reason for the approval was because these nations were showing "continued progress toward a market-based economy; the rule of law; free trade; economic policies that will reduce poverty; and protection of workers rights". Of the 35 countries on this list, a glaring - but fully-deserved - omission is that of the troubled Zimbabwe.