I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5480 

To promote economic diversification, entrepreneurship, and private sector 

development in Africa, and to promote partnerships among small and 

medium enterprises in the United States and the African private sector 

in qualified sub-Saharan African countries. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 25, 2006 

Mr. MCDERMOTT (for himself, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. 

ENGLISH of Pennsylvania, Ms. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota, Mr. JEFFERSON, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. MILLENDER-MCDONALD, Mr. 

MEEKS of New York, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. BORDALLO, 

Ms. WATSON, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE

JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. GONZALEZ, Mr. MILLER of North Carolina, and 

Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations, and in addition to 

the Committees on Ways and Means, Small Business, and Financial 

Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To promote economic diversification, entrepreneurship, and 

private sector development in Africa, and to promote 

partnerships among small and medium enterprises in 

the United States and the African private sector in qualified sub-Saharan African countries. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
2 

•HR 5480 IH

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘African Entrepreneur3 ship Act of 2006’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) According to the Organization for Economic 

7 Co-operation and Development (OECD), the econo8 mies of sub-Saharan African countries have reg9 istered their highest overall growth in eight years— 

10 more than five percent in 2004—due to rising global 

11 commodity prices, the expansion of production in oil12 producing sub-Saharan African countries, and pru13 dent macro-economic policies. 

14 (2) While economic liberalization has reduced 

15 the involvement of governments of sub-Saharan Afri16 can countries in the economic sector, it has not re17 sulted in improved credit delivery to finance domes18 tic businesses, particularly small and medium enter19 prises in sub-Saharan African countries, in the pri20 vate sector. 

21 (3) Increasingly, governments of sub-Saharan 

22 African countries are making concerted efforts to in23 vestigate corruption, prosecute corrupt officials, and 

24 recover public funds through the creation of agencies 

25 such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Com26 mission in Nigeria, the Serious Fraud Office in 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
3 

•HR 5480 IH

1 Ghana, the Federal Ethics and Anticorruption Com2 mission in Ethiopia, and the Anticorruption Com3 mission in Zambia. 

4 (4) A major challenge for sub-Saharan African 

5 countries is to productively invest their own capital 

6 to expand domestic business ownership and create 

7 employment, particularly for youth, in order to pro8 mote broad and sustainable economic growth and de9 mocracy. 

10 (5) While the microenterprise movement has 

11 shown itself to be an important generator of self-em12 ployment, research and experience throughout sub13 Saharan Africa also have proven that small and me14 dium enterprises are the greatest catalyst for job 

15 creation, skills transfer, and wealth creation in sub16 Saharan Africa. 

17 (6) Although small and medium enterprises in 

18 sub-Saharan African countries make up the largest 

19 portion of the formal economy in sub-Saharan Afri20 can countries, the average annual contribution of in21 vestments of such small and medium enterprises to 

22 growth in the gross domestic product of sub-Saha23 ran African countries by proportion declined from an 

24 average of 14 percent in the 1970s, to 13 percent 

25 in the 1980s, and to 12 percent in the first half of 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
4 

•HR 5480 IH

1 the 1990s, while during the same period, the propor2 tion of gross domestic product investment by small 

3 and medium enterprises in other developing regions 

4 increased. 

5 (7) Many retail banks avoid lending to small 

6 and medium enterprises in sub-Saharan African 

7 countries or engage in predatory lending practices, 

8 considering such small and medium enterprises as 

9 presenting a high credit default risk and as costly to 

10 administer, and instead concentrate on providing 

11 credit to larger local or international firms or on 

12 holding high-yield government bonds. 

13 (8) This approach harms the prospects for sus14 tainable private sector development by ignoring the 

15 necessity of a bottom-up capital formation—a key 

16 factor in creating jobs which is necessary to reduce 

17 poverty and income inequalities. 

18 (9) Governments of sub-Saharan African coun19 tries must develop the fiscal policies, economic insti20 tutions, legal frameworks, labor market protections, 

21 commercial infrastructures, and lending practices to 

22 create and manage competitive business environ23 ments for investors in small and medium enterprises 

24 in sub-Saharan African countries. Further, small 

25 and medium enterprises in sub-Saharan African 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
5 

•HR 5480 IH

1 countries must acquire the business skills, expertise, 

2 and capital financing necessary to manage successful 

3 businesses. 

4 (10) The innovative trade capacity building ef5 forts underway with African nations through the 

6 United States Agency for International Develop7 ment’s Regional Trade Hubs enable African econo8 mies to become better integrated into regional and 

9 global markets to take advantage of trade opportuni10 ties afforded by the African Growth and Opportunity 

11 Act (19 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.). These efforts can be 

12 further augmented by providing technical assistance 

13 to small and medium enterprises, to help diversify 

14 and grow the economies of sub-Saharan Africa. 

15 (11) The experience of United States private 

16 volunteer organizations shows that deliberately tar17 geting the capacity of small and medium enterprises, 

18 including farmers’ cooperatives and rural businesses, 

19 to access and participate in local, national, and re20 gional markets effectively builds the capacity of 

21 small and medium enterprises to participate in ex22 port markets. 

23 (12) A World Bank study estimates that coun24 tries chiefly exporting a single commodity, such as 

25 oil, may be 22 times more likely have a civil war 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
6 

•HR 5480 IH

1 break out than a country with a diverse mix of ex2 ports. 

3 (13) By the year 2015, it is estimated that 25 

4 percent of United States oil imports will originate in 

5 sub-Saharan Africa, making the political and eco6 nomic stability of the region of paramount impor7 tance to United States national security. Recent in8 cidents of violence and the recurrent disruption of 

9 oil production, including, for example, in the Niger 

10 Delta of Nigeria, highlight the need to work closely 

11 with local communities to create jobs and spread the 

12 benefits of the global economy to local residents. 

13 Many oil corporations have established local content 

14 programs to provide contracting opportunities to in15 digenous business leaders, but many of these busi16 ness people lack the skills necessary to benefit from 

17 the highly profitable business projects available to 

18 them. 

19 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS; DECLARATION OF POLICY. 

20 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con21 gress that in an increasingly competitive global environ22 ment driven by transformations in technology, commu23 nications, transportation, finance, production, labor mar24 kets, sub-Saharan African countries should develop a 

25 strong and diverse private sector, particularly small and 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
7 

•HR 5480 IH

1 medium enterprises, to be full participants in the global 

2 economy. 

3 (b) DECLARATION OF POLICY.—It shall be the policy 

4 of the Government of the United States to make available 

5 for private sector development in sub-Saharan African 

6 countries professional, technical, and other resources for 

7 capacity-building for retail banks and small and medium 

8 enterprises, including farmers’ cooperatives and busi9 nesses, to promote entrepreneurship and economic and ex10 port diversification, to expand the formal sector, and to 

11 increase trade under the African Growth and Opportunity 

12 Act (19 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.) of exports from Africa to 

13 the United States and trade among sub-Saharan African 

14 countries. 

15 SEC. 4. AFRICAN ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION FINANCING 

16 RATE. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 4611 of 

18 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ in sub20 paragraph (A), by striking the period and inserting 

21 ‘‘, and’’ in subparagraph (B), and by adding at the 

22 end the following new subparagraph: 

23 ‘‘(C) the African Economic Diversification 

24 Fund financing rate.’’, and 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
8 

•HR 5480 IH

1 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ in sub2 paragraph (A), by striking the period and inserting 

3 ‘‘, and’’ in subparagraph (B), and by adding at the 

4 end the following new subparagraph: 

5 ‘‘(C) the African Economic Diversification 

6 Fund financing rate is, with respect to a petro7 leum product, the column 1 general rate of duty 

8 under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 

9 United States that applies to such petroleum 

10 product.’’. 

11 (b) APPLICATION OF AFRICAN ECONOMIC DIVER12 SIFICATION FUND FINANCING RATE.—Section 4611 of 

13 such Code (relating to environmental tax on petroleum) 

14 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub15 section: 

16 ‘‘(g) APPLICATION OF AFRICAN ECONOMIC DIVER17 SIFICATION FUND FINANCING RATE.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The African Economic Di19 versification Fund financing rate shall apply only to 

20 petroleum products entered into the United States 

21 directly from a beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

22 country described in section 506A(c) of the Trade 

23 Act of 1974. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
9 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ‘‘(2) TERMINATION.—The African Economic 

2 Diversification Fund financing rate shall not apply 

3 after December 31, 2011.’’. 

4 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

6 December 31, 2006. 

7 SEC. 5. AFRICAN ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION FUND. 

8 (a) CREATION OF TRUST FUND.—Subchapter A of 

9 chapter 98 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

10 amended by inserting at the end the following new section: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 9511. AFRICAN ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION FUND. 

12 ‘‘(a) CREATION OF TRUST FUND.—There is estab13 lished in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund 

14 to be known as the ‘African Economic Diversification 

15 Fund’, consisting of such amounts as may be appropriated 

16 or credited to the African Economic Diversification Fund. 

17 ‘‘(b) TRANSFER OF CERTAIN TAXES.—There are 

18 hereby appropriated to the African Economic Diversifica19 tion Fund amounts equivalent to the taxes received in the 

20 Treasury under section 4611 (relating to environmental 

21 tax on petroleum) to the extent attributable to the African 

22 Economic Diversification Fund financing rate under sec23 tion 4611(c). 

24 ‘‘(c) EXPENDITURES.—Amounts in the African Eco25 nomic Diversification Fund shall be available, as provided 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
10 

•HR 5480 IH

1 by appropriation Acts, only for purposes of making the 

2 following expenditures— 

3 ‘‘(1) DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.—Ex4 penditures related to personnel and technical assist5 ance provided by the Secretary of Agriculture, 

6 through the Foreign Agriculture Service, for the 

7 purpose of— 

8 ‘‘(A) developing and facilitating value9 added agricultural processing activities, as de10 termined by the Secretary of Agriculture, in 

11 qualified sub-Saharan African countries, 

12 ‘‘(B) developing a comprehensive plan for 

13 the expansion and diversification of agricultural 

14 trade between qualified sub-Saharan African 

15 countries and the United States under the Afri16 can Growth and Opportunity Act and among 

17 sub-Saharan African countries, 

18 ‘‘(C) arranging trade and investment mis19 sions to qualified sub-Saharan African countries 

20 to generate joint venture investment and joint 

21 venture marketing agreements between farmers 

22 in the United States and qualified sub-Saharan 

23 African countries, and 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
11 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ‘‘(D) improving market access for United 

2 States agricultural products and equipment in 

3 qualified sub-Saharan African countries by— 

4 ‘‘(i) strengthening the capacity of ag5 ricultural producer organizations in quali6 fied sub-Saharan African countries to iden7 tify agricultural equipment and supply 

8 needs, 

9 ‘‘(ii) working with United States fi10 nancial institutions to increase the number 

11 of such financial institutions that cooper12 ate with the Supplier Credit Guarantee 

13 Program, 

14 ‘‘(iii) working with financial institu15 tions in qualified sub-Saharan African 

16 countries to remove obstacles that inhibit 

17 fuller implementation of the Export Credit 

18 Guarantee and Intermediate Export Credit 

19 Guarantee programs, and 

20 ‘‘(iv) facilitating access for ports of 

21 entry and warehouse facilities in qualified 

22 sub-Saharan African countries to the Fa23 cilities Guarantee Program. 

24 ‘‘(2) SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.—Ex25 penditures related to carrying out the 21st Century 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
12 

•HR 5480 IH

1 African Entrepreneurs Program, established pursu2 ant to section 22(g) of the Small Business Act, in 

3 qualified sub-Saharan African countries. 

4 ‘‘(3) DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.—Expendi5 tures related to personnel and technical assistance 

6 provided by the Secretary of Commerce for the pur7 pose of— 

8 ‘‘(A) promoting business partnerships be9 tween entrepreneurs in the United States and 

10 in qualified sub-Saharan African countries, 

11 ‘‘(B) hosting conferences and initiating 2- 

12 way trade missions to discover and encourage 

13 opportunities for private sector cooperation be14 tween the United States and qualified sub-Sa15 haran African countries, 

16 ‘‘(C) helping United States firms fully un17 derstand the risks and benefits of doing busi18 ness in qualified sub-Saharan African countries 

19 and developing tools and mechanisms to reduce 

20 such risks and enhance such benefits, 

21 ‘‘(D) facilitating the transfer of United 

22 States commercial and manufacturing tech23 nology to qualified sub-Saharan African coun24 tries for the purposes of expanding commercial 

25 opportunities, 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
13 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ‘‘(E) promoting the establishment of lend2 ing programs of financial institutions for quali3 fied small and medium African enterprises by 

4 establishing effective credit risk management 

5 systems to improve the quality of the assets of 

6 such financial institutions and the ability of 

7 such financial institutions to research and as8 sess overall credit risk, and 

9 ‘‘(F) promoting the development of quali10 fied small and medium African enterprises that 

11 are located in rural and peri-urban areas by 

12 carrying out capacity-building activities for 

13 microenterprise business associations and 

14 microfinance networks. 

15 ‘‘(4) U.S.-AFRICA PRIVATE SECTOR ADVISORY

16 COUNCIL AND AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK.—Ex17 penditures related to carrying out sections 7 and 8 

18 of the African Entrepreneurship Act of 2006. 

19 ‘‘(5) UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTA20 TIVE.—Expenditures related to activities by the 

21 United States Trade Representative to convene trade 

22 capacity building programs in qualified sub-Saharan 

23 African countries to provide technical assistance 

24 aimed to increase international trade under the Afri25 can Growth and Opportunity Act. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
14 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section— 

2 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN COUN3 TRY.—The term ‘qualified sub-Saharan African 

4 country’ means a beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

5 country described in section 506A(c) of the Trade 

6 Act of 1974. 

7 ‘‘(2) QUALIFIED SMALL AND MEDIUM AFRICAN

8 ENTERPRISE.—The term ‘qualified small and me9 dium African enterprise’ means a business in a 

10 qualified sub-Saharan African country that meets 

11 the standards developed for such country by the Ad12 ministrator of the Small Business Administration, in 

13 cooperation with the Administrator of the United 

14 States Agency for International Development, pursu15 ant to section 22(g)(4) of the Small Business Act.’’. 

16 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

17 for subchapter A of chapter 98 of such Code is amended 

18 by inserting at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 9511. African Economic Diversification Fund.’’. 

19 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

20 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

21 December 31, 2006. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
15 

•HR 5480 IH

1 SEC. 6. 21ST CENTURY AFRICAN ENTREPRENEURS PRO2 GRAM. 

3 Section 22 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649) 

4 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub5 section: 

6 ‘‘(g) AFRICAN ENTREPRENEURS PROGRAM.— 

7 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator 

8 shall establish in the Office of International Trade 

9 a program to be known as the ‘21st Century African 

10 Entrepreneurs Program’ to provide assistance to 

11 qualified small and medium African enterprises. 

12 ‘‘(2) AFRICAN ENTREPRENEURS PROGRAM CEN13 TERS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTERS.—As 

15 part of the program established under para16 graph (1), the Administrator shall establish not 

17 less than three African Entrepreneurs Program 

18 Centers during each of fiscal years 2007 

19 through 2012. The Administrator shall estab20 lish the Centers in central and accessible places 

21 in qualified sub-Saharan African countries. 

22 ‘‘(B) FUNCTIONS.—The function of each 

23 African Entrepreneurs Program Center estab24 lished under subparagraph (A) is to provide in25 formation and guidance to qualified small and 

26 medium African enterprises, including— 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
16 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ‘‘(i) providing quality training, coun2 seling, and access to financial resources to 

3 enable qualified small and medium African 

4 enterprises to present well-developed busi5 ness plans to banks in qualified sub-Saha6 ran African countries for the purpose of 

7 accessing capital; 

8 ‘‘(ii) providing counseling, training, 

9 and technical assistance in all aspects of 

10 small business management, including 

11 marketing and production, to qualified 

12 small and medium African enterprises; 

13 ‘‘(iii) providing management assist14 ance to current and prospective owners of 

15 qualified small and medium African enter16 prises; 

17 ‘‘(iv) partnering with banks in quali18 fied sub-Saharan African countries, the 

19 United States Agency for International 

20 Development (specifically the Development 

21 Credit Account), the Department of the 

22 Treasury, and international financial insti23 tutions, such as the World Bank and the 

24 African Development Bank, to provide loan 

25 guarantees to financial institutions in 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
17 

•HR 5480 IH

1 qualified sub-Saharan African countries 

2 that make loans to qualified small and me3 dium African enterprises; 

4 ‘‘(v) developing programs to help 

5 qualified small and medium African enter6 prises to understand export opportunities 

7 that may exist, an in particular, to under8 stand trade preferences available to busi9 nesses located in qualified sub-Saharan Af10 rican countries; and 

11 ‘‘(vi) reaching out particularly to cur12 rent and prospective women entrepreneurs 

13 to provide assistance relating to launching 

14 or growing a small business, and imple15 menting the model of the women’s business 

16 centers under section 29, with regard to 

17 services and assistance provided. 

18 ‘‘(C) PERSONNEL.— 

19 ‘‘(i) DIRECTOR; STAFF.—Each Afri20 can Entrepreneurs Program Center estab21 lished under subparagraph (A) shall have a 

22 director and staff. 

23 ‘‘(ii) VOLUNTEERS; PART-TIME

24 STAFF.—The director of an African Entre25 preneurs Program Center may hire volunVerDate Aug 31 2005 20:48 May 30, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5480.IH H5480

cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
18 

•HR 5480 IH

1 teers or part-time staff, as the director 

2 finds appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(iii) CONSULTANTS.—The director of 

4 an African Entrepreneurs Program Center 

5 may hire a consultant or engineer or pay 

6 for the use of a testing laboratory, if the 

7 consultant, engineer, or laboratory is nec8 essary to provide assistance to a qualified 

9 small and medium African enterprises that 

10 is in need of specialized expertise and that 

11 requests assistance from the Center. 

12 ‘‘(D) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—For each 

13 country in which the Administrator establishes 

14 an African Entrepreneurs Program Center, the 

15 Administrator shall establish an advisory com16 mittee made up of members from the private 

17 sector for the purpose of obtaining input and 

18 advice from the members on how the Center 

19 may best serve the needs of qualified small and 

20 medium African enterprises in that country. 

21 ‘‘(E) SELF-SUFFICIENCY.— 

22 ‘‘(i) INITIAL FUNDING.—The Admin23 istrator should seek to obtain 30 percent of 

24 the funds required for each African Entre25 preneurs Program Center through partnerVerDate Aug 31 2005 20:48 May 30, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5480.IH H5480

cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
19 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ships and in-kind support, including build2 ing space, instructor time, furniture dona3 tion, and co-funding from the public or pri4 vate sector, in the country in which the 

5 Center is located. 

6 ‘‘(ii) LONG-TERM FUNDING.—Not 

7 later than the date that is five years after 

8 the date on which the Center is estab9 lished, the Administrator should seek to 

10 obtain 100 percent of the funds required 

11 for each African Entrepreneurs Program 

12 Center through mechanisms, such as pub13 lic and private partnerships and small or 

14 modest fees-for-service. 

15 ‘‘(3) AFRICAN SMALL BUSINESS

16 ROUNDTABLES.—The Administrator shall convene 

17 two roundtables each year in each country in which 

18 an African Entrepreneurs Program Center is estab19 lished under paragraph (2) to promote cooperation 

20 between banks and entrepreneurs in the United 

21 States and in qualified sub-Saharan African coun22 tries and to identify problems in the delivery of fi23 nancial services to small businesses. Each roundtable 

24 should include representatives from banks in the 

25 United States with experience working with and benVerDate Aug 31 2005 20:48 May 30, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5480.IH H5480

cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
20 

•HR 5480 IH

1 efitting from existing United States financial pro2 grams that support small businesses and farmers’ 

3 cooperatives. 

4 ‘‘(4) SME CONGRESS OF SUB-SAHARAN AFRI5 CA.—The Administrator shall seek to establish the 

6 SME Congress of Sub-Saharan Africa. The SME 

7 Congress of Sub-Saharan Africa shall be modeled 

8 after the SME Congress of the Americas, a hemi9 sphere network of micro, small and medium enter10 prise service providers created to enhance the ability 

11 of small business to effectively participate in and 

12 benefit from international trade by seeking to reduce 

13 the time and costs associated with starting and 

14 growing a small or medium enterprise. The Adminis15 trator shall seek to coordinate SME Congress of 

16 Sub-Saharan Africa meetings with the annual meet17 ings described in section 105(c)(2)(B) of the African 

18 Growth and Opportunity Act (19 U.S.C. 3704). 

19 ‘‘(5) QUALIFIED SMALL AND MEDIUM AFRICAN

20 ENTERPRISE.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in 

22 cooperation with the Administrator of the 

23 United States Agency for International Devel24 opment, shall develop standards, specific to the 

25 qualified sub-Saharan African country in which 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
21 

•HR 5480 IH

1 the business is located, for determining whether 

2 such business is a qualified small and medium 

3 African enterprise. 

4 ‘‘(B) QUALIFIED SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN

5 COUNTRY.—For purposes of this subsection, the 

6 term ‘qualified sub-Saharan African country’ 

7 means a beneficiary sub-Saharan African coun8 try described in section 506A(c) of the Trade 

9 Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2466a).’’. 

10 SEC. 7. U.S.-AFRICA PRIVATE SECTOR ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

11 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the 

12 Small Business Administration shall establish an advisory 

13 council to be known as the ‘‘U.S.-Africa Private Sector 

14 Advisory Council’’ (hereinafter referred to as the Council). 

15 (b) DUTIES.—The Council shall— 

16 (1) advise the Congress and Federal agencies 

17 on— 

18 (A) the use of expenditures made from 

19 amounts available in the African Economic Di20 versification Fund, established under section 

21 9511 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

22 and 

23 (B) the implementation of policies and pro24 grams described in subsection (c) of such sec25 tion; 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
22 

•HR 5480 IH

1 (2) assist the private sector in the United 

2 States and qualified sub-Saharan African countries 

3 in carrying out the opportunities identified by— 

4 (A) conferences and 2-way trade missions 

5 organized by the Secretary of Commerce to dis6 cover and encourage opportunities for private 

7 sector cooperation between the United States 

8 and qualified sub-Saharan African countries, 

9 and 

10 (B) trade and investment missions to 

11 qualified sub-Saharan African countries ar12 ranged by the Secretary of Agriculture to gen13 erate joint venture investment and joint venture 

14 marketing agreements between farmers in the 

15 United States and in qualified sub-Saharan Af16 rican countries; 

17 (3) assist in the coordination of annual meet18 ings hosted by United States representatives of the 

19 private sector with representatives of the private sec20 tor from sub-Saharan Africa, as described in section 

21 105(c)(2)(B) of the African Growth and Opportunity 

22 Act (19 U.S.C. 3704); and 

23 (4) advise the President on providing assistance 

24 to qualified small and medium African enterprises in 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
23 

•HR 5480 IH

1 accordance with section 496A of the Foreign Assist2 ance Act of 1961 (as amended by section 10). 

3 (c) APPOINTMENT.— 

4 (1) MEMBERS.—The Council shall be composed 

5 of 20 members, as follows: 

6 (A) 1 member, appointed jointly by the 

7 chair and ranking minority member of the 

8 Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 

9 Representatives and the chair and ranking mi10 nority member of the Committee on Finance of 

11 the Senate, from the private-sector business 

12 community in qualified sub-Saharan African 

13 countries, 

14 (B) 1 member, appointed jointly by the 

15 chair and ranking minority member of the 

16 Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 

17 Representatives and the chair and ranking mi18 nority member of the Committee on Finance of 

19 the Senate, from the private-sector business 

20 community in the United States, 

21 (C) 1 member, appointed by the President, 

22 from the private-sector business community in 

23 qualified sub-Saharan African countries, 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
24 

•HR 5480 IH

1 (D) 1 member, appointed by the President, 

2 from the private-sector business community in 

3 the United States, 

4 (E) 8 members, appointed jointly by the 

5 Council members identified in subparagraphs 

6 (A) through (D), from the private-sector busi7 ness community in qualified sub-Saharan Afri8 can countries, and 

9 (F) 8 members, appointed jointly by the 

10 Council members identified in subparagraphs 

11 (A) through (D), from the private-sector busi12 ness community in the United States. 

13 (2) CONSULTATION REQUIRED.—The Council 

14 members identified in subparagraphs (A) through 

15 (D) of paragraph (1) shall consult among themselves 

16 prior to the appointment of additional members of 

17 the Council in order to achieve, to the maximum ex18 tent possible, fair and equitable representation of 

19 various points of view with respect to the matters to 

20 be studied by the Council under subsection (b). 

21 (3) TERMS OF APPOINTMENT.—The members 

22 of the Council shall be appointed not more than 90 

23 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

24 The members of the Council shall serve for the life 

25 of the Council. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
25 

•HR 5480 IH

1 (4) CO-CHAIRS.—The member of the Council 

2 identified in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of para3 graph (1) shall serve as Co-chairs of the Council. 

4 (d) MEETINGS.— 

5 (1) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 180 

6 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

7 Council shall conduct its first meeting. 

8 (2) OPEN MEETINGS.—Each meeting of the 

9 Council shall be open to the public. 

10 (e) VACANCIES.—A vacancy on the Council— 

11 (1) shall be filled in the same manner as the 

12 original appointment not later than 30 days after 

13 the Council is given notice of the vacancy, and 

14 (2) shall not affect the power of the remaining 

15 members to execute the duties of the Council. 

16 (f) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Members of the Council 

17 shall receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu 

18 of subsistence, in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 

19 of title 5, United States Code. 

20 (g) DIRECTOR; STAFF.— 

21 (1) DIRECTOR.—The Co-chairs shall appoint a 

22 Director. 

23 (2) STAFF.—The Director, with the approval of 

24 the Council, may appoint and fix the pay of addi25 tional personnel. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
26 

•HR 5480 IH

1 (h) MANAGEMENT.—The Council shall be managed 

2 by the Council members, the director, and staff in a man3 ner consistent with the purposes of this section. 

4 (i) OTHER AUTHORITY.—The Council may lease 

5 space and acquire personal property to the extent that 

6 funds are available. 

7 (j) SELF-SUFFICIENCY.—Not later than the date 

8 that is 5 years after the date on which the Council is es9 tablished, the Council should seek to obtain 100 percent 

10 of the funds required to carry out this section through 

11 partnerships, cash contributions, membership fees, and in12 kind support. 

13 (k) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

14 of the first meeting of the Council, and annually there15 after, the Council shall make public and transmit to the 

16 Congress and the Small Business Administration a re17 port— 

18 (1) detailing the actions the Council has taken 

19 during the previous year in fulfillment of the duties 

20 described in subsection (b), 

21 (2) making recommendations related to policies 

22 that would further encourage the development of the 

23 private sector in qualified sub-Saharan African coun24 tries, particularly with regard to qualified small and 

25 medium African enterprises, and 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
27 

•HR 5480 IH

1 (3) including a budget proposal for the next fis2 cal year. 

3 SEC. 8. COORDINATION WITH AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT 

4 BANK. 

5 (a) AFRICAN ENTREPRENEURS PROGRAM.—The Ad6 ministrator of the Small Business Administration should 

7 provide the Secretary of the Treasury with information 

8 pertaining to how African Development Bank programs 

9 can be used to improve the 21st Century African Entre10 preneurs Program, established pursuant to section 22(g) 

11 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649(g)). The Sec12 retary of the Treasury should instruct the United States 

13 Executive Director at the African Development Bank to 

14 urge the African Development Bank to use programs of 

15 the African Development Bank in this manner. 

16 (b) VALUE-ADDED AGRICULTURE LOAN FACILITY.— 

17 The Secretary of Agriculture should provide the Secretary 

18 of the Treasury with information pertaining to how the 

19 establishment of a value-added agricultural loan facility 

20 can be used to support the development of qualified small 

21 and medium African enterprises devoted to the processing 

22 of agricultural commodities. The Secretary of the Treas23 ury should instruct the United States Executive Director 

24 at the African Development Bank to urge the African De25 velopment Bank to use loan programs of the African DeVerDate Aug 31 2005 20:48 May 30, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5480.IH H5480

cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
28 

•HR 5480 IH

1 velopment Bank to foster the establishment of such a facil2 ity. 

3 (c) FEASIBILITY STUDIES.— 

4 (1) The Secretary of Agriculture, through the 

5 Foreign Agricultural Service, should provide tech6 nical assistance to farmers in qualified sub-Saharan 

7 African countries in the development of pre-feasi8 bility studies to identify potentially profitable 

9 projects for submission to the African Development 

10 Bank. 

11 (2) The United States Trade Development 

12 Agency should provide assistance in the preparation 

13 of final feasibility studies for projects to be sub14 mitted to African Development Bank under the 

15 United States Department of Agriculture-African 

16 Development Bank loan facility program. 

17 (d) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR AGRICULTURAL

18 FACILITIES.—The Secretary of Agriculture, through the 

19 Foreign Agricultural Service, should provide technical as20 sistance to farmers in qualified sub-Saharan African coun21 tries who are funded by the African Development Bank 

22 loan facility. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
29 

•HR 5480 IH

1 SEC. 9. ACTIVITIES TO STRENGTHEN FUNDAMENTAL 

2 LABOR RIGHTS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State should un4 dertake activities to strengthen internationally recognized 

5 labor rights and standards in qualified sub-Saharan Afri6 can countries by— 

7 (1) ensuring that governments and businesses 

8 in qualified sub-Saharan African countries are aware 

9 of their obligations (through membership in the 

10 International Labor Organization (ILO) as well as 

11 under United States trade preference programs such 

12 as the generalized system of preferences and the Af13 rican Growth and Opportunity Act) to respect, pro14 mote, and realize the international labor standards 

15 established by the ILO, 

16 (2) monitoring the enforcement of labor laws in 

17 qualified sub-Saharan African countries, including 

18 labor laws relating to workers’ rights to free associa19 tion, prohibitions on child labor, forced labor, and 

20 discrimination, safety in the work environment, 

21 workplace standards laws regulating minimum wage 

22 and hours of work, and collective bargaining, 

23 through ensuring, among other things, that report24 ing on labor rights at United States missions is a 

25 priority, and 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
30 

•HR 5480 IH

1 (3) providing technical assistance to enhance 

2 enforcement of labor laws in qualified sub-Saharan 

3 African countries and for institutional capacity 

4 building of trade unions to increase their capabilities 

5 to represent workers at workplaces and with their 

6 governments. 

7 (b) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of section 7, 8, and 

8 9 of this Act: 

9 (1) QUALIFIED SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN COUN10 TRY.—The term ‘‘qualified sub-Saharan African 

11 country’’ means a beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

12 country described in section 506A(c) of the Trade 

13 Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2466a). 

14 (2) QUALIFIED SMALL AND MEDIUM AFRICAN

15 ENTERPRISE.—The term ‘‘qualified small and me16 dium African enterprise’’ means a business in a 

17 qualified sub-Saharan African country that meet the 

18 standards developed for such country by the Admin19 istrator of the Small Business Administration, in co20 operation with the Administrator of the United 

21 States Agency for International Development, pursu22 ant to section 22(g)(4) of the Small Business Act 

23 (15 U.S.C. 649). 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
31 

•HR 5480 IH

1 SEC. 10. ASSISTANCE FOR QUALIFIED SMALL AND MEDIUM 

2 AFRICAN ENTERPRISES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 10 of part I of the For4 eign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2293 et seq.) is 

5 amended by inserting after section 496 the following new 

6 section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 496A. ASSISTANCE FOR QUALIFIED SMALL AND ME8 DIUM AFRICAN ENTERPRISES. 

9 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.—The President, acting 

10 through the Administrator of the United States Agency 

11 for International Development, is authorized to provide as12 sistance, on such terms and conditions as the President 

13 may determine, for qualified small and medium African 

14 enterprises. 

15 ‘‘(b) ACTIVITIES SUPPORTED.—Assistance provided 

16 under subsection (a) shall, to the maximum extent prac17 ticable, be used to carry out the following activities: 

18 ‘‘(1) YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROGRAMS.— 

19 Activities to establish youth entrepreneurship train20 ing programs in schools or through community part21 nerships with business and youth organizations in 

22 qualified sub-Saharan African countries to promote 

23 economic skills, ethics, integrity, and healthy life 

24 skills among youth in such countries. Such activities 

25 may include providing assistance through United 

26 States and international youth organizations located 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
32 

•HR 5480 IH

1 in qualified sub-Saharan African countries and min2 istries of education, local schools, businesses, and 

3 youth groups to— 

4 ‘‘(A) teach basic concepts of business eco5 nomics and free enterprise and the relevance of 

6 education for such youth to improving the qual7 ity of their lives; 

8 ‘‘(B) teach basic concepts of good govern9 ance, the rule of law, human rights, and citizen10 ship as they relate to national development; 

11 ‘‘(C) assist youth to make decisions about 

12 their educational and professional future and 

13 develop communication skills that are vital to 

14 succeed in the domestic, regional, and inter15 national business world; 

16 ‘‘(D) develop a specialized curriculum for 

17 youth in rural and peri-urban areas and utilize, 

18 whenever possible, business and community vol19 unteers to deliver such curriculum; and 

20 ‘‘(E) organize student-led enterprises. 

21 ‘‘(2) ANTI-CORRUPTION INITIATIVES.—Activi22 ties that combat corruption, improve transparency 

23 and accountability, and promote other forms of good 

24 governance and management in qualified sub-Saha25 ran African countries. Such activities may include— 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
33 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ‘‘(A) providing technical assistance to gov2 ernments of qualified sub-Saharan African 

3 countries that are implementing the United Na4 tions Convention against Corruption, including 

5 assistance to combat anti-competitive, unethical, 

6 and corrupt activities, including protection 

7 against actions that may distort or inhibit 

8 transparency in market mechanisms and impair 

9 the development of qualified small and medium 

10 African enterprises; 

11 ‘‘(B) providing assistance to develop a 

12 legal framework for commercial transactions 

13 that fosters business practices that promote 

14 transparent, ethical, and competitive behavior 

15 in the economic sector, such as commercial 

16 codes that incorporate international standards 

17 and protection of national and international in18 tellectual property rights and core labor stand19 ards; and 

20 ‘‘(C) providing training and technical as21 sistance relating to drafting of anti-corruption, 

22 privatization, and competitive statutory and ad23 ministrative codes, and providing technical as24 sistance to ministries and agencies imple25 menting anti-corruption laws and regulations. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
34 

•HR 5480 IH

1 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN COUN3 TRY.—The term ‘qualified sub-Saharan African 

4 country’ means a beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

5 country described in section 506A(c) of the Trade 

6 Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2466a). 

7 ‘‘(2) QUALIFIED SMALL AND MEDIUM AFRICAN

8 ENTERPRISE.—The term ‘qualified small and me9 dium African enterprise’ means a business in a 

10 qualified sub-Saharan African country that meet the 

11 standards developed for such country by the Admin12 istrator of the Small Business Administration, in co13 operation with the Administrator of the United 

14 States Agency for International Development, pursu15 ant to section 22(g)(4) of the Small Business Act 

16 (15 U.S.C. 649).’’. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 497 of the 

18 Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2294) is 

19 amended in the second sentence by adding at the end be20 fore the period the following: ‘‘or section 496A’’. 

21 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For pur22 poses of carrying out this section, there are authorized to 

23 be appropriated $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2007 

24 and 2008. 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
35 

•HR 5480 IH

1 SEC. 11. REPORT. 

2 Not later than 6 months after the date of the enact3 ment of this Act, the President shall transmit to Congress 

4 a report including legislative recommendations for the cre5 ation of American jobs, particularly in economically dis6 advantaged areas, by utilizing opportunities that arise 

7 from an increase in United States imports. 

Æ 


cchase on PROD1PC60 with BILLS