Notice2023-10480
Annual Review of Country Eligibility for Benefits Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act for Calendar Year 2024
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 17, 2023
Issuing agencies
Trade Representative, Office of United States
Abstract
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is announcing the initiation of the annual review of the eligibility of sub-Saharan African countries to receive the benefits of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The AGOA Implementation Subcommittee of the Trade Policy Staff Committee (AGOA Subcommittee) is requesting written public comments for this review and will conduct a virtual public hearing on this matter. In developing its recommendations for the President on AGOA country eligibility for calendar year 2024, the AGOA Subcommittee will consider the written comments, written testimony, and oral testimony.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 95 (Wednesday, May 17, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 95 (Wednesday, May 17, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31579-31580]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-10480]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
[Docket Number USTR-2023-0003]
Annual Review of Country Eligibility for Benefits Under the
African Growth and Opportunity Act for Calendar Year 2024
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice of virtual public hearing and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is
announcing the initiation of the annual review of the eligibility of
sub-Saharan African countries to receive the benefits of the African
Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The AGOA Implementation Subcommittee
of the Trade Policy Staff Committee (AGOA Subcommittee) is requesting
written public comments for this review and will conduct a virtual
public hearing on this matter. In developing its recommendations for
the President on AGOA country eligibility for calendar year 2024, the
AGOA Subcommittee will consider the written comments, written
testimony, and oral testimony.
DATES:
July 7, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. EDT: Deadline for submission of written
comments, requests to testify, and written testimony, regarding the
eligibility of countries to be designated as beneficiary sub-Saharan
African countries.
July 24, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. EDT: The AGOA Subcommittee will convene
a virtual public hearing to receive oral testimony related to sub-
Saharan African countries' eligibility for AGOA benefits via WebEx.
ADDRESSES: The AGOA Subcommittee strongly prefers electronic
submissions made through the Federal eRulemaking Portal: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> (<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>). Follow the instructions for
submitting written comments and testimony and requests to testify in
sections III and IV below, using Docket Number USTR-2023-0003. For
alternatives to on-line submissions, please contact Jeremy Streatfeild,
Director of African Affairs, Office of African Affairs, in advance of
the relevant deadline at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#53193621363e2a7d167d00272136322735363a3f3713262027217d363c237d343c25"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e4ae819681899dcaa1cab7909681859082818d8880a491979096ca818b94ca838b92">[email protected]</span></a> or (202)
395-8642.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeremy Streatfeild, Director of
African Affairs, Office of African Affairs, at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e8a28d9a8d8591c6adc6bb9c9a8d899c8e8d81848ca89d9b9c9ac68d8798c68f879e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="014b6473646c782f442f5275736460756764686d6541747275732f646e712f666e77">[email protected]</span></a> or (202) 395-8642.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
AGOA (Title I of the Trade and Development Act of 2000, Pub. L.
106-200) (19 U.S.C. 2466a et seq.), as amended, authorizes the
President to designate sub-Saharan African countries as beneficiaries
eligible for duty-free treatment for certain additional products not
included for duty-free treatment under the Generalized System of
Preferences (GSP) (title V of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2461 et
seq.) (1974 Act), as well as for the preferential treatment for certain
textile and apparel articles. The President may designate a country as
a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country eligible for AGOA benefits if
he determines that the country meets the eligibility criteria set forth
in section 104 of AGOA (19 U.S.C. 3703) and section 502 of the 1974 Act
(19 U.S.C. 2462).
Section 104 of AGOA includes requirements that the country has
established or is making continual progress toward establishing, among
other things:
<bullet> a market-based economy;
<bullet> the rule of law;
<bullet> political pluralism;
<bullet> the right to due process;
<bullet> the elimination of barriers to U.S. trade and investment;
<bullet> economic policies to reduce poverty;
<bullet> a system to combat corruption and bribery, and;
<bullet> protection of internationally recognized worker rights.
In addition, the country may not engage in activities that
undermine U.S. national security or foreign policy interests or engage
in gross violations of internationally recognized human rights. Section
502 of the 1974 Act provides for country eligibility criteria under
GSP. For a complete list of the AGOA eligibility criteria and more
information on the GSP criteria, see section 104 of the AGOA and
section 502 of the 1974 Act.
Section 506A of the 1974 Act requires the President to monitor and
annually review the progress of each sub-Saharan African country in
meeting the foregoing eligibility criteria in order to determine if a
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country should continue to be eligible,
and if a sub-Saharan African country that currently is not a
beneficiary, should be designated as a beneficiary. If the President
determines that a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country is not making
continual progress in meeting the eligibility requirements, the
President must terminate the designation of the country as a
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country. The President also may
withdraw, suspend or limit the application of duty-free treatment with
respect to specific articles from a country if he determines that it
would be more effective in promoting compliance with AGOA eligibility
requirements than terminating the designation of the country as a
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country.
For 2023 the President designated the following 35 countries as
beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries:
1. Angola
2. Benin
3. Botswana
4. Cabo Verde
5. Central African Republic
6. Chad
7. Comoros
8. Democratic Republic of Congo
9. Republic of Congo
10. Cote d'Ivoire
11. Djibouti
12. Eswatini
13. Gabon
14. The Gambia
15. Ghana
16. Guinea-Bissau
17. Kenya
18. Lesotho
19. Liberia
20. Madagascar
21. Malawi
22. Mauritius
23. Mozambique
24. Namibia
25. Niger
26. Nigeria
27. Rwanda (AGOA apparel benefits suspended effective July 31, 2018)
28. Sao Tome & Principe
29. Senegal
30. Sierra Leone
31. South Africa
32. Tanzania
33. Togo
34. Uganda
35. Zambia
The President did not designate the following sub-Saharan African
countries as beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries for 2023:
1. Burkina Faso
2. Burundi
3. Cameroon
4. Equatorial Guinea (graduated from GSP; ineligible for
consideration for AGOA benefits)
[[Page 31580]]
5. Eritrea
6. Ethiopia
7. Guinea
8. Mali
9. Mauritania
10. Seychelles (graduated from GSP; ineligible for consideration for
AGOA benefits)
11. Somalia (requested consideration for AGOA benefits for the first
time this year)
12. South Sudan
13. Sudan (did not request designation as an AGOA beneficiary
country)
14. Zimbabwe
The AGOA Subcommittee is requesting written public comments for
this review and will conduct a virtual public hearing to develop
recommendations to the President in connection with the annual review
of sub-Saharan African countries' eligibility for AGOA benefits. The
Secretary of Labor may consider comments related to the child labor
criteria to prepare the U.S. Department of Labor's report on child
labor as required under section 504 of the 1974 Act.
II. Hearing Participation
The AGOA Subcommittee will convene a virtual public hearing to
receive oral testimony related to sub-Saharan African countries'
eligibility for AGOA benefits via WebEx on Monday, July 24, 2023,
beginning at 10:00 a.m. EDT. Persons wishing to observe the public
hearing will find a link on USTR's web page for sub-Saharan Africa on
the day of the hearing at <a href="https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/africa">https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/africa</a>.
To ensure participation, you must submit requests to present oral
testimony at the hearing and written testimony by midnight on July 7,
2023, via <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>, using Docket Number USTR-2023-0003.
Instructions for submission are in sections III and IV below. Remarks
at the hearing will be limited to no more than five minutes to allow
for possible questions from the AGOA Subcommittee. Because the hearing
will be public, testimony should not include any business confidential
information (BCI). USTR will provide a link in advance of the virtual
hearing to persons wishing to testify.
The AGOA Subcommittee requests small businesses (generally defined
by the Small Business Administration as firms with fewer than 500
employees) or organizations representing small business members that
submit comments to self-identify as such, so that we may be aware of
issues of particular interest to small businesses.
III. Procedures for Written Submissions
To be assured of consideration, submit your written comments,
requests to testify, and written testimony by the July 7, 2023, 11:59
p.m. EDT deadline. All submission must be in English. The AGOA
Subcommittee strongly encourages submissions via <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>, using
Docket Number USTR-2023-0003.
To make a submission via <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>, enter Docket Number USTR-
2023-0003 in the `search for' field on the home page and click
`search.' The site will provide a search results page listing all
documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to this notice
by selecting `notice' under `document type' in the `refine documents
results' section on the left side of the screen and click on the link
entitled `comment.'
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a> allows users to make submissions by filling in a
`type comment' field or by attaching a document using the `upload file'
field. The AGOA Subcommittee prefers that you provide submissions in an
attached document and note `see attached' in the `comment' field on the
online submission form. The AGOA Subcommittee prefers submissions in
Microsoft Word (.doc) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). If you use an
application other than those two, please indicate the name of the
application in the `type comment' field.
At the beginning of your submission or on the first page (if an
attachment), include the following text: (1) 2024 AGOA Eligibility
Review; (2) the relevant country or countries; and (3) whether the
submission is a comment, request to testify, or written testimony.
Submissions should not exceed 30 single-spaced, standard letter-size
pages in 12-point type, including attachments. Please do not attach
separate cover letters to electronic submissions; rather, include any
information that might appear in a cover letter in the submission
itself. Similarly, to the extent possible, please include any exhibits,
annexes, or other attachments in the same file as the submission
itself, not as separate files. You will receive a tracking number upon
completion of the submission procedure at <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>. The tracking
number is confirmation that <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a> received your submission.
Keep the confirmation for your records. USTR is not able to provide
technical assistance for <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>.
For further information on using <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>, please consult
the resources provided on the website by clicking on `How to Use
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>' on the bottom of the home page. The AGOA Subcommittee
may not consider submissions that you do not make in accordance with
these instructions.
If you are unable to provide submissions as requested, please
contact Jeremy Streatfeild, Director of African Affairs, Office of
African Affairs, in advance of the deadline at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f2b89780979f8bdcb7dca1868097938694979b9e96b287818680dc979d82dc959d84"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="43092631262e3a6d066d10373126223725262a2f2703363037316d262c336d242c35">[email protected]</span></a> or (202) 395-8642, to arrange for an
alternative method of transmission. USTR will not accept hand-delivered
submissions. General information concerning USTR is available at
<a href="http://www.ustr.gov">www.ustr.gov</a>.
IV. Business Confidential Information (BCI) Submissions
If you ask the AGOA Subcommittee to treat information you submit as
BCI, you must certify that the information is business confidential and
you would not customarily release it to the public. For any comments
submitted electronically containing BCI, the file name of the business
confidential version should begin with the characters `BCI.' You must
clearly mark any page containing BCI with `BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL' at
the top of that page. Filers of submissions containing BCI also must
submit a public version of their submission that will be placed in the
docket for public inspection. The file name of the public version
should begin with the character `P.'
V. Public Viewing of Review Submissions
USTR will post written submissions in the docket for public
inspection, except properly designated BCI. You can view submissions at
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a> by entering Docket Number USTR-2023-0003 in the search
field on the home page.
William Shpiece,
Chair of the Trade Policy Staff Committee, Office of the United States
Trade Representative.
[FR Doc. 2023-10480 Filed 5-16-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3390-F3-P
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