Deputy United States Trade Representative C.J. Mahoney and African Union Commission Commissioner for Trade and Industry Albert Muchanga signed a joint statement concerning trade between the United States and the African Union at the opening ceremony of the 2019 African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum.
According to the statement released, quoted as “The United States and the African Union share a common goal of enhancing the African Union’s efforts to increase continental trade and investment under the African Continental Free Trade Area (the “AfCFTA”).
The United States and the African Union share a mutual desire and common goal to deepen dialogue and cooperation on trade and investment matters and to increase trade and investment between the United States of America and Africa.
The United States recognizes the African Union’s expression of interest to work closely together to identify ways the United States can cooperate on the development of the AfCFTA. The United States recognizes that one of the African Union’s principal aims is to promote sustainable development as well as the integration of African economies.
The United States and the African Union intend to work together with respect to the AfCFTA to promote a sound trade policy environment, regional economies of scale, and the increased flow of goods and services on the continent in order to increase both continental trade and investment, as well as trade and investment between the United States and Africa.
The United States and the African Union intend to jointly identify subject areas related to the ongoing negotiation and implementation of the AfCFTA as subjects for cooperation and for possible technical assistance and capacity building.
The United States and the African Union intend to work together to develop activities that support these priority objectives.
The United States and the African Union share a mutual desire to pursue deeper trade and investment ties beyond the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which is scheduled to expire in 2025, eventually leading to a continental trade partnership between the United States and Africa that supports regional integration.
