Liberia to Benefit from AGOA with Duty Free Treatment for Textile and Apparel Imports

Fashion Cloture reports “The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced on Tuesday that the Republic of Liberia is now eligible to receive duty-free and quota-free treatment for certain apparel and textile imports under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).” I did an interview January 2008 forLadybrille covering AGOA with the USTR. I have provided excerpts below for those looking to take advantage of AGOA.

“LADYBRILLE.com: Thanks for the talk and agreeing to the interview to help enlighten us.
US trade official: Pleased to have an opportunity to talk with you and share information on the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and its impact on U.S.-sub-Saharan Africa trade.

LADYBRILLE.com: Alright we have been hearing AGOA, AGOA! What is it?
US trade official: AGOA is a trade preference program that provides duty-free access to the U.S. market for substantially all products exported from 39 eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africa. AGOA amends the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) by expanding GSP product coverage (about 4,650 products) by more than 1,800 additional tariff lines, including apparel, certain textiles (e.g., towels, bedsheets, made-ups), ethnic printed fabrics, and handmade, handloomed and folklore articles and extending duty-free treatment for eligible sub-Saharan African countries until 2015.

LADYBRILLE.com: What countries are eligible for AGOA?
US trade official: There are currently 39 beneficiary countries: Angola; Benin; Botswana; Burkina Faso; Burundi, Cameroon; Cape Verde; Chad; Republic of Congo; Democratic Republic of Congo; Djibouti; Ethiopia; Gabon; The Gambia; Ghana; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Kenya; Lesotho; Liberia; Madagascar; Malawi; Mali; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mozambique; Namibia; Niger; Nigeria; Rwanda; São Tomé and Príncipe; Senegal; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; South Africa; Swaziland; Tanzania; Uganda; and Zambia.

LADYBRILLE.com: Are there any forms that must be completed to qualify for AGOA and where can those interested get them?
US trade official: The vast majority of products from AGOA beneficiary countries may enter the United States duty-free. Standard customs forms and instructions for U.S. importers are available on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website at http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/import/.” ~Ladybrille has the full interview.