II 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2529 

To extend and modify the trade benefits under the African Growth and 

Opportunity Act. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 16, 2004 

Mr. GRASSLEY (for himself, Mr. BAUCUS, Mr. FRIST, Mr. DASCHLE, Mr. 

LUGAR, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Mr. SANTORUM, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. MCCAIN, 

Mr. SUNUNU, Mr. FITZGERALD, Mr. DEWINE, Mr. LAUTENBERG, Ms. 

CANTWELL, Mr. INHOFE, and Mr. CORZINE) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To extend and modify the trade benefits under the African 

Growth and Opportunity Act. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘AGOA Acceleration 

5 Act of 2004’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The African Growth and Opportunity Act 

9 (in this section and section 3 referred to as ‘‘the 
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1 Act’’) has helped to spur economic growth and bol2 ster economic reforms in the countries of sub-Saha3 ran Africa and has fostered stronger economic ties 

4 between the countries of sub-Saharan Africa and the 

5 United States; as a result, exports from the United 

6 States to sub-Saharan Africa reached record levels 

7 after the enactment of the Act, while exports from 

8 sub-Saharan Africa to the United States have in9 creased considerably. 

10 (2) The Act’s eligibility requirements have rein11 forced democratic values and the rule of law, and 

12 have strengthened adherence to internationally rec13 ognized worker rights in eligible sub-Saharan Afri14 can countries. 

15 (3) The Act has helped to bring about substan16 tial increases in foreign investment in sub-Saharan 

17 Africa, especially in the textile and apparel sectors, 

18 where tens of thousands of new jobs have been cre19 ated. 

20 (4) As a result of the Agreement on Textiles 

21 and Apparel of the World Trade Organization, under 

22 which quotas maintained by WTO member countries 

23 on textile and apparel products end on January 1, 

24 2005, sub-Saharan Africa’s textile and apparel in25 dustry will be severely challenged by countries whose 
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1 industries are more developed and have greater ca2 pacity, economies of scale, and better infrastructure. 

3 (5) The underdeveloped physical and financial 

4 infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa continues to 

5 discourage investment in the region. 

6 (6) Regional integration establishes a founda7 tion on which sub-Saharan African countries can co8 ordinate and pursue policies grounded in African in9 terests and history to achieve sustainable develop10 ment. 

11 (7) Expanded trade because of the Act has im12 proved fundamental economic conditions within sub13 Saharan Africa. The Act has helped to create jobs 

14 in the poorest region of the world, and most sub-Sa15 haran African countries have sought to take advan16 tage of the opportunities provided by the Act. 

17 (8) Agricultural biotechnology holds promise for 

18 helping solve global food security and human health 

19 crises in Africa and, according to recent studies, has 

20 made contributions to the protection of the environ21 ment by reducing the application of pesticides, re22 ducing soil erosion, and creating an environment 

23 more hospitable to wildlife. 

24 (9) (A) One of the greatest challenges facing 

25 African countries continues to be the HIV/AIDS epi-
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1 demic, which has infected as many as one out of 

2 every four people in some countries, creating tre3 mendous social, political, and economic costs. Afri4 can countries need continued United States financial 

5 and technical assistance to combat this epidemic. 

6 (B) More awareness and involvement by govern7 ments are necessary. Countries like Uganda, recog8 nizing the threat of HIV/AIDS, have boldly attacked 

9 it through a combination of education, public aware10 ness, enhanced medical infrastructure and resources, 

11 and greater access to medical treatment. An effec12 tive HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment strategy 

13 involves all of these steps. 

14 (10) African countries continue to need trade 

15 capacity assistance to establish viable economic ca16 pacity, a well-grounded rule of law, and efficient 

17 government practices. 

18 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

19 The Congress supports— 

20 (1) a continued commitment to increase trade 

21 between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa 

22 and increase investment in sub-Saharan Africa to 

23 the benefit of workers, businesses, and farmers in 

24 the United States and in sub-Saharan Africa, in25 cluding by developing innovative approaches to en-
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1 courage development and investment in sub-Saharan 

2 Africa; 

3 (2) a reduction of tariff and nontariff barriers 

4 and other obstacles to trade between the countries of 

5 sub-Saharan Africa and the United States, with par6 ticular emphasis on reducing barriers to trade in 

7 emerging sectors of the economy that have the 

8 greatest potential for development; 

9 (3) development of sub-Saharan Africa’s phys10 ical and financial infrastructure; 

11 (4) international efforts to fight HIV/AIDS, 

12 malaria, tuberculosis, other infectious diseases, and 

13 serious public health problems; 

14 (5) many of the aims of the New Partnership 

15 for African Development (NEPAD), which include— 

16 (A) reducing poverty and increasing eco17 nomic growth; 

18 (B) promoting peace, democracy, security, 

19 and human rights; 

20 (C) promoting African integration by deep21 ening linkages between African countries and 

22 by accelerating Africa’s economic and political 

23 integration into the rest of the world; 

24 (D) attracting investment, debt relief, and 

25 development assistance; 
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1 (E) promoting trade and economic diver2 sification; 

3 (F) broadening global market access for 

4 United States and African exports; 

5 (G) improving transparency, good govern6 ance, and political accountability; 

7 (H) expanding access to social services, 

8 education, and health services with a high pri9 ority given to addressing HIV/AIDS, malaria, 

10 tuberculosis, other infectious diseases, and 

11 other public health problems; 

12 (I) promoting the role of women in social 

13 and economic development by reinforcing edu14 cation and training and by assuring their par15 ticipation in political and economic arenas; and 

16 (J) building the capacity of governments in 

17 sub-Saharan Africa to set and enforce a legal 

18 framework, as well as to enforce the rule of law; 

19 (6) negotiation of reciprocal trade agreements 

20 between the United States and sub-Saharan African 

21 countries, with the overall goal of expanding trade 

22 across all of sub-Saharan Africa; 

23 (7) the President seeking to negotiate, with in24 terested eligible sub-Saharan African countries, bi25 lateral trade agreements that provide investment op-
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1 portunities, in accordance with section 2102(b)(3) of 

2 the Trade Act of 2002 (19 U.S.C. 3802(b)(3)); 

3 (8) efforts by the President to negotiate with 

4 the member countries of the Southern African Cus5 toms Union in order to provide the opportunity to 

6 deepen and make permanent the benefits of the Act 

7 while giving the United States access to the markets 

8 of these African countries for United States goods 

9 and services, by reducing tariffs and non-tariff bar10 riers, strengthening intellectual property protection, 

11 improving transparency, establishing general dispute 

12 settlement mechanisms, and investor-state and state13 to-state dispute settlement mechanisms in invest14 ment; 

15 (9) a comprehensive and ambitious trade agree16 ment with the Southern African Customs Union, 

17 covering all products and sectors, in order to mature 

18 the economic relationship between sub-Saharan Afri19 can countries and the United States and because 

20 such an agreement would deepen United States eco21 nomic and political ties to the region, lend momen22 tum to United States development efforts, encourage 

23 greater United States investment, and promote re24 gional integration and economic growth; 
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1 (10) regional integration among sub-Saharan 

2 African countries and business partnerships between 

3 United States and African firms; and 

4 (11) economic diversification in sub-Saharan 

5 African countries and expansion of trade beyond tex6 tiles and apparel. 

7 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON RECIPROCITY AND RE8 GIONAL ECONOMIC INTEGRATION. 

9 It is the sense of the Congress that— 

10 (1) the preferential market access opportunities 

11 for eligible sub-Saharan African countries will be 

12 complemented and enhanced if those countries are 

13 implementing actively and fully, consistent with any 

14 remaining applicable phase-in periods, their obliga15 tions under the World Trade Organization, including 

16 obligations under the Agreement on Trade-Related 

17 Aspects of Intellectual Property, the Agreement on 

18 the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Meas19 ures, and the Agreement on Trade-Related Invest20 ment Measures, as well as the other agreements de21 scribed in section 101(d) of the Uruguay Round 

22 Agreements Act (19 U.S.C. 3511(d)); 

23 (2) eligible sub-Saharan African countries 

24 should participate in and support mutual trade liber25 alization in ongoing negotiations under the auspices 
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1 of the World Trade Organization, including by mak2 ing reciprocal commitments with respect to improv3 ing market access for industrial and agricultural 

4 goods, and for services, recognizing that such com5 mitments may need to reflect special and differential 

6 treatment for developing countries; 

7 (3) some of the most pernicious trade barriers 

8 against exports by developing countries are the trade 

9 barriers maintained by other developing countries; 

10 therefore, eligible sub-Saharan African countries will 

11 benefit from the reduction of trade barriers in other 

12 developing countries, especially in developing coun13 tries that represent some of the greatest potential 

14 markets for African goods and services; and 

15 (4) all countries should make sanitary and 

16 phytosanitary decisions on the basis of sound 

17 science. 

18 SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON INTERPRETATION OF TEX19 TILE AND APPAREL PROVISIONS OF AGOA. 

20 It is the sense of the Congress that the executive 

21 branch, particularly the Committee for the Implementa22 tion of Textile Agreements (CITA), the Bureau of Cus23 toms and Border Protection of the Department of Home24 land Security, and the Department of Commerce, should 

25 interpret, implement, and enforce the provisions of section 
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1 112 of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, relating 

2 to preferential treatment of textile and apparel articles, 

3 broadly in order to expand trade by maximizing opportuni4 ties for imports of such articles from eligible sub-Saharan 

5 African countries. 

6 SEC. 6. DEFINITION. 

7 In this Act, the term ‘‘eligible sub-Saharan African 

8 country’’ means an eligible sub-Saharan African country 

9 under the African Growth and Opportunity Act. 

10 SEC. 7. EXTENSION OF AFRICAN GROWTH AND OPPOR11 TUNITY ACT. 

12 (a) GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES.— 

13 (1) EXTENSION OF PROGRAM.—Section 506B 

14 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2466b) is 

15 amended by striking ‘‘2008’’ and inserting ‘‘2015’’. 

16 (2) INPUTS FROM FORMER BENEFICIARY COUN17 TRIES.—Section 506A of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 

18 U.S.C. 2466a) is amended— 

19 (A) in subsection (b)(2)(B), by inserting 

20 ‘‘or former beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

21 countries’’ after ‘‘countries’’; and 

22 (B) in subsection (c)— 

23 (i) by striking ‘‘title, the terms’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘title— 

25 ‘‘(1) the terms’’; and 
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1 (ii) by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(2) the term ‘former beneficiary sub-Saharan 

4 African country’ means a country that, after being 

5 designated as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

6 country under the African Growth and Opportunity 

7 Act, ceased to be designated as such a country by 

8 reason of its entering into a free trade agreement 

9 with the United States.’’. 

10 (b) APPAREL ARTICLES.—(1) Section 112(b)(1) of 

11 the African Growth and Opportunity Act (19 U.S.C. 

12 3721(b)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘(including’’ and in13 serting ‘‘or both (including’’. 

14 (2) Section 112(b)(3) of the African Growth and Op15 portunity Act (19 U.S.C. 3721 (b)(3)) is amended— 

16 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

17 (A)— 

18 (i) by striking ‘‘either in the United States 

19 or one or more beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

20 countries’’ each place it appears and inserting 

21 ‘‘in the United States or one or more bene22 ficiary sub-Saharan African countries or former 

23 beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries, or 

24 both’’; and 
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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘subject to the following:’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘whether or not the apparel arti3 cles are also made from any of the fabrics, fab4 ric components formed, or components knit-to5 shape described in paragraph (1) or (2) (unless 

6 the apparel articles are made exclusively from 

7 any of the fabrics, fabric components formed, or 

8 components knit-to-shape described in para9 graph (1) or (2)), subject to the following:’’; 

10 and 

11 (B) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B) and 

12 inserting the following: 

13 ‘‘(A) LIMITATIONS ON BENEFITS.— 

14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Preferential treat15 ment under this paragraph shall be ex16 tended in the 1-year period beginning Oc17 tober 1, 2003, and in each of the 11 suc18 ceeding 1-year periods, to imports of ap19 parel articles in an amount not to exceed 

20 the applicable percentage of the aggregate 

21 square meter equivalents of all apparel ar22 ticles imported into the United States in 

23 the preceding 12-month period for which 

24 data are available. 
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1 ‘‘(ii) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For 

2 purposes of this subparagraph, the term 

3 ‘applicable percentage’ means— 

4 ‘‘(I) 4.747 percent for the 1-year 

5 period beginning October 1, 2003, in6 creased in each of the 5 succeeding 1- 

7 year periods by equal increments, so 

8 that for the 1-year period beginning 

9 October 1, 2007, the applicable per10 centage does not exceed 7 percent; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(II) for each succeeding 1-year 

13 period until September 30, 2015, not 

14 to exceed 7 percent. 

15 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR LESSER DEVEL16 OPED COUNTRIES.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Preferential treat18 ment under this paragraph shall be ex19 tended though September 30, 2007, for ap20 parel articles wholly assembled, or knit-to21 shape and wholly assembled, or both, in 

22 one or more lesser developed beneficiary 

23 sub-Saharan African countries, regardless 

24 of the country of origin of the fabric or the 

25 yarn used to make such articles, in an 
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1 amount not to exceed the applicable per2 centage of the aggregate square meter 

3 equivalents of all apparel articles imported 

4 into the United States in the preceding 12- 

5 month period for which data are available. 

6 ‘‘(ii) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For 

7 purposes of the subparagraph, the term 

8 ‘applicable percentage’ means— 

9 ‘‘(I) 2.3571 percent for the 1- 

10 year period beginning October 1, 

11 2003; 

12 ‘‘(II) 2.6428 percent for the 1- 

13 year period beginning October 1, 

14 2004; 

15 ‘‘(III) 2.9285 percent for the 1- 

16 year period beginning October 1, 

17 2005; and 

18 ‘‘(IV) 1.6071 percent for the 1- 

19 year period beginning October 1, 

20 2006. 

21 ‘‘(iii) LESSER DEVELOPED BENE22 FICIARY SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN COUN23 TRY.—For purposes of this subparagraph, 

24 the term ‘lesser developed beneficiary sub25 Saharan African country’ means— 
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1 ‘‘(I) a beneficiary sub-Saharan 

2 African country that had a per capita 

3 gross national product of less than 

4 $1,500 in 1998, as measured by the 

5 International Bank for Reconstruction 

6 and Development; 

7 ‘‘(II) Botswana; and 

8 ‘‘(III) Namibia.’’. 

9 (3) Section 112(b)(5)(A) of the African Growth and 

10 Opportunity Act (19 U.S.C. 3721(b)(5)(A)) is amended 

11 to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Apparel articles that 

13 are both cut (or knit-to-shape) and sewn or oth14 erwise assembled in one or more beneficiary 

15 sub-Saharan African countries, to the extent 

16 that apparel articles of such fabrics or yarns 

17 would be eligible for preferential treatment, 

18 without regard to the source of the fabrics or 

19 yarns, under Annex 401 to the NAFTA.’’. 

20 (c) HANDLOOMED, HANDMADE, FOLKLORE ARTI21 CLES AND ETHNIC PRINTED FABRICS.—Section 

22 112(b)(6) of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (19 

23 U.S.C. 3721(b)(6)) is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(6) HANDLOOMED, HANDMADE, FOLKLORE

25 ARTICLES AND ETHNIC PRINTED FABRICS.— 
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A handloomed, hand2 made, folklore article or an ethnic printed fab3 ric of a beneficiary sub-Saharan African coun4 try or countries that is certified as such by the 

5 competent authority of such beneficiary country 

6 or countries. For purposes of this section, the 

7 President, after consultation with the bene8 ficiary sub-Saharan African country or coun9 tries concerned, shall determine which, if any, 

10 particular textile and apparel goods of the coun11 try (or countries) shall be treated as being 

12 handloomed, handmade, or folklore articles or 

13 an ethic printed fabric. 

14 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS FOR ETHNIC PRINT15 ED FABRIC.—Ethnic printed fabrics qualified 

16 under this paragraph are— 

17 ‘‘(i) fabrics containing a selvedge on 

18 both edges, having a width of less than 50 

19 inches, classifiable under subheading 

20 5208.52.30 or 5208.52.40 of the Har21 monized Tariff Schedule of the United 

22 States; 

23 ‘‘(ii) of the type that contains designs, 

24 symbols, and other characteristics of Afri25 can prints— 
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1 ‘‘(I) normally produced for and 

2 sold on the indigenous African mar3 ket; and 

4 ‘‘(II) normally sold in Africa by 

5 the piece as opposed to being tailored 

6 into garments before being sold in in7 digenous African markets; 

8 ‘‘(iii) printed, including waxed, in one 

9 or more eligible beneficiary sub-Saharan 

10 countries; and 

11 ‘‘(iv) fabrics formed in the United 

12 States, from yarns formed in the United 

13 States, or from fabric formed in one or 

14 more beneficiary sub-Saharan African 

15 country from yarn originating in either the 

16 United States or one or more beneficiary 

17 sub-Saharan African countries.’’. 

18 (d) REGIONAL AND U.S. SOURCES.—Section 

19 112(b)(7) of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (19 

20 U.S.C. 3721(b)(7)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or former 

21 beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries’’ after ‘‘and one 

22 or more beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries’’ each 

23 place it appears. 

24 (e) SPECIAL RULES.— 
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1 (1) CERTAIN COMPONENTS.—Section 112(d) of 

2 the African Growth and Opportunity Act (19 U.S.C. 

3 3721(d)) is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(3) CERTAIN COMPONENTS.—An article other6 wise eligible for preferential treatment under this 

7 section will not be ineligible for such treatment be8 cause the article contains— 

9 ‘‘(A) any collars or cuffs (cut or knit-to10 shape), 

11 ‘‘(B) drawstrings, 

12 ‘‘(C) shoulder pads or other padding, 

13 ‘‘(D) waistbands, 

14 ‘‘(E) belt attached to the article, 

15 ‘‘(F) straps containing elastic, or 

16 ‘‘(G) elbow patches, 

17 that do not meet the requirements set forth in sub18 section (b), regardless of the country of origin of the 

19 item referred to in the applicable subparagraph of 

20 this paragraph.’’. 

21 (2) DE MINIMIS RULE.—Section 112(d)(2) of 

22 the African Growth and Opportunity Act (19 U.S.C. 

23 3721(d)(2)) is amended— 
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1 (A) by inserting ‘‘or former beneficiary 

2 sub-Saharan African countries’’ after ‘‘coun3 tries’’; and 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘7 percent’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘10 percent’’. 

6 (f) DEFINITIONS.—Section 112(e) of the African 

7 Growth and Opportunity Act (19 U.S.C. 3721(e)) is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(4) FORMER SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN COUN10 TRY.—The term ‘former sub-Saharan African coun11 try’ means a country that, after being designated as 

12 a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country under 

13 this Act, ceased to be designated as such a bene14 ficiary sub-Saharan country by reason of its entering 

15 into a free trade agreement with the United 

16 States.’’. 

17 SEC. 8. ENTRIES OF CERTAIN APPAREL ARTICLES PURSU18 ANT TO THE AFRICAN GROWTH AND OPPOR19 TUNITY ACT. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 514 of 

21 the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1514) or any other pro22 vision of law, the Secretary of the Treasury shall liquidate 

23 or reliquidate as free of duty and free of any quantitative 

24 restrictions, limitations, or consultation levels entries of 

25 articles described in subsection (d) made on or after Octo-
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1 ber 1, 2000, and before the date of the enactment of this 

2 Act. 

3 (b) REQUESTS.—Liquidation or reliquidation may be 

4 made under subsection (a) with respect to an entry de5 scribed in subsection (d) only if a request therefor is filed 

6 with the Secretary of the Treasury within 90 days after 

7 the date of the enactment of this Act and the request con8 tains sufficient information to enable the Secretary to lo9 cate the entry or reconstruct the entry if it cannot be lo10 cated. 

11 (c) PAYMENT OF AMOUNTS OWED.—Any amounts 

12 owed by the United States pursuant to the liquidation or 

13 reliquidation of any entry under subsection (a) shall be 

14 paid not later than 180 days after the date of such liquida15 tion or reliquidation. 

16 (d) ENTRIES.—The entries referred to in subsection 

17 (a) are entries of apparel articles that meet the require18 ments of section 112(b) of the African Growth and Oppor19 tunity Act, as amended by section 3108 of the Trade Act 

20 of 2002 and this Act. 

21 SEC. 9. DEVELOPMENT STUDY AND CAPACITY BUILDING. 

22 (a) REPORTS.—The President shall, by not later than 

23 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, conduct 

24 a study on each eligible sub-Saharan African country, 

25 that— 
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1 (1) identifies sectors of the economy of that 

2 country with the greatest potential for growth, in3 cluding through export sales; 

4 (2) identifies barriers, both domestically and 

5 internationally, that are impeding growth in such 

6 sectors; and 

7 (3) makes recommendations on how the United 

8 States Government and the private sector can pro9 vide technical assistance to that country to assist in 

10 dismantling such barriers and in promoting invest11 ment in such sectors. 

12 (b) DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.—The Presi13 dent shall disseminate information in each study con14 ducted under subsection (a) to the appropriate United 

15 States agencies for the purpose of implementing rec16 ommendations on the provision of technical assistance and 

17 in identifying opportunities for United States investors, 

18 businesses, and farmers. 

19 SEC. 10. ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF INFRASTRUCTURE TO 

20 SUPPORT INCREASING TRADE CAPACITY AND 

21 ECOTOURISM. 

22 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

23 (1) Ecotourism, which consists of— 

24 (A) responsible and sustainable travel and 

25 visitation to relatively undisturbed natural areas 
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1 in order to enjoy and appreciate nature (and 

2 any accompanying cultural features, both past 

3 and present) and animals, including species 

4 that are rare or endangered, 

5 (B) promotion of conservation and provi6 sion for beneficial involvement of local popu7 lations, and 

8 (C) visitation designed to have low negative 

9 impact upon the environment, 

10 is expected to expand 30 percent globally over the 

11 next decade. 

12 (2) Ecotourism will increase trade capacity by 

13 sustaining otherwise unsustainable infrastructure, 

14 such as road, port, water, energy, and telecommuni15 cation development. 

16 (3) According to the United States Department 

17 of State and the United Nations Environment Pro18 gramme, sustainable tourism, such as ecotourism, 

19 can be an important part of the economic develop20 ment of a region, especially a region with natural 

21 and cultural protected areas. 

22 (4) Sub-Saharan Africa enjoys an international 

23 comparative advantage in ecotourism because it fea24 tures extensive protected areas that host a variety of 
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1 ecosystems and traditional cultures that are major 

2 attractions for nature-oriented tourism. 

3 (5) National parks and reserves in sub-Saharan 

4 Africa should be considered a basis for regional de5 velopment, involving communities living within and 

6 adjacent to them and, given their strong inter7 national recognition, provide an advantage in 

8 ecotourism marketing and promotion. 

9 (6) Desert areas in sub-Saharan Africa rep10 resent complex ecotourism attractions, showcasing 

11 natural, geological, and archaeological features, and 

12 nomad and other cultures and traditions. 

13 (7) Many natural zones in sub-Saharan Africa 

14 cross the political borders of several countries; there15 fore, transboundary cooperation is fundamental for 

16 all types of ecotourism development. 

17 (8) The commercial viability of ecotourism is 

18 enhanced when small and medium enterprises, par19 ticularly microenterprises, successfully engage with 

20 the tourism industry in sub-Saharan Africa. 

21 (9) Adequate capacity building is an essential 

22 component of ecotourism development if local com23 munities are to be real stakeholders that can sustain 

24 an equitable approach to ecotourism management. 
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1 (10) Ecotourism needs to generate local com2 munity benefits by utilizing sub-Saharan Africa’s 

3 natural heritage, parks, wildlife reserves, and other 

4 protected areas that can play a significant role in 

5 encouraging local economic development by sourcing 

6 food and other locally produced resources. 

7 (b) ACTION BY THE PRESIDENT.—The President 

8 shall develop and implement policies to— 

9 (1) encourage the development of infrastructure 

10 projects that will help to increase trade capacity and 

11 a sustainable ecotourism industry in eligible sub-Sa12 haran African countries; 

13 (2) encourage and facilitate transboundary co14 operation among sub-Saharan African countries in 

15 order to facilitate trade; 

16 (3) encourage the provision of technical assist17 ance to eligible sub-Saharan African countries to es18 tablish and sustain adequate trade capacity develop19 ment; and 

20 (4) encourage micro-, small-, and medium-sized 

21 enterprises in eligible sub-Saharan African countries 

22 to participate in the ecotourism industry. 
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1 SEC. 11. ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF TRANSPORTATION, 

2 ENERGY, AGRICULTURE, AND TELECOMMUNI3 CATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE. 

4 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) In order to increase exports from, and trade 

6 among, eligible sub-Saharan African countries, 

7 transportation systems in those countries must be im8 proved to increase transport efficiencies and lower 

9 transport costs. 

10 (2) Vibrant economic growth requires a devel11 oped telecommunication and energy infrastructure. 

12 (3) Sub-Saharan Africa is rich in exportable ag13 ricultural goods, but development of this industry re14 mains stymied because of an underdeveloped infra15 structure. 

16 (b) ACTION BY THE PRESIDENT.—In order to en17 hance trade with Africa and to bring the benefits of trade 

18 to African countries, the President shall develop and im19 plement policies to encourage investment in eligible sub20 Saharan African countries, particularly with respect to the 

21 following: 

22 (1) Infrastructure projects that support, in par23 ticular, development of land transport road and rail24 road networks and ports, and the continued upgrad25 ing and liberalization of the energy and tele26 communications sectors. 
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1 (2) The establishment and expansion of modern 

2 information and communication technologies and 

3 practices to improve the ability of citizens to re4 search and disseminate information relating to, 

5 among other things, the economy, education, trade, 

6 health, agriculture, the environment, and the media. 

7 (3) Agriculture, particularly in processing and 

8 capacity enhancement. 

9 SEC. 12. FACILITATION OF TRANSPORTATION. 

10 In order to facilitate and increase trade flows between 

11 eligible sub-Saharan African countries and the United 

12 States, the President shall foster improved port-to-port 

13 and airport-to-airport relationships. These relationships 

14 should facilitate— 

15 (1) increased coordination between customs 

16 services at ports and airports in the United States 

17 and such countries in order to reduce time in tran18 sit; 

19 (2) interaction between customs and technical 

20 staff from ports and airports in the United States 

21 and such countries in order to increase efficiency 

22 and safety procedures and protocols relating to 

23 trade; 
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1 (3) coordination between chambers of com2 merce, freight forwarders, customs brokers, and oth3 ers involved in consolidating and moving freight; and 

4 (4) trade through air service between airports 

5 in the United States and such countries by increas6 ing frequency and capacity. 

7 SEC. 13. AGRICULTURAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 

8 (a) IDENTIFICATION OF COUNTRIES.—The President 

9 shall identify not fewer than 10 eligible sub-Saharan Afri10 can countries as having the greatest potential to increase 

11 marketable exports of agricultural products to the United 

12 States and the greatest need for technical assistance, par13 ticularly with respect to pest risk assessments and com14 plying with sanitary and phytosanitary rules of the United 

15 States. 

16 (b) PERSONNEL.—The President shall assign at least 

17 20 full-time personnel for the purpose of providing assist18 ance to the countries identified under subsection (a) to 

19 ensure that exports of agricultural products from those 

20 countries meet the requirements of United States law. 

21 SEC. 14. TRADE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON AFRICA. 

22 The President shall convene the trade advisory com23 mittee on Africa established by Executive Order 11846 of 

24 March 27, 1975, under section 135(c) of the Trade Act 

25 of 1974, in order to facilitate the goals and objectives of 
28 

•S 2529 IS 

1 the African Growth and Opportunity Act and this Act, and 

2 to maintain ongoing discussions with African trade and 

3 agriculture ministries and private sector organizations on 

4 issues of mutual concern, including regional and inter5 national trade concerns and World Trade Organization 

6 issues. 

Æ