President Joe Biden has signed a resolution calling on three African countries, including Ethiopia, to withdraw from the AGOA. The AGOA sy...
President Joe Biden has signed a resolution calling on three African countries, including Ethiopia, to withdraw from the AGOA.
The AGOA system allows African countries to benefit by importing various products into the US market tax-free.
The proposal was made by Ambassador Catherine Thai, a senior US government policy official.
He said the decision was due to the ongoing war in northern Ethiopia for a year and that the decision would not be implemented if there were any improvements before the New Year, which begins next week.
This decision, signed and implemented by President Joe Biden, will leave Ethiopia without the benefit of the AGOA from the New Year.
He said the Ethiopian government was trying to put undue pressure on the United States and that the move would hurt the economic interests of AGOA, women and children.
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Ethiopia is one of the 38 countries that have benefited from AGOA's two decades of tax exemption, and it exports up to $ 150 million worth of leather, textiles, and clothing products to the United States each year.
Since Ethiopia became a beneficiary of AGOA, its exports to the United States have grown exponentially, creating employment opportunities for many citizens.
Of these, the clothing and leather products industry has created direct employment for 200,000 people, 80 percent of whom are women.
During a recent visit to Africa, US Secretary of State Anthony Blincon was asked about the validity of the decision:
"If the crisis in Ethiopia continues, we must address the benefits of AGOA to Ethiopia by January 1 (December 23)," he said.
"If Ethiopia can take immediate remedial action within two months, it will continue to benefit," Catherine Tay said in a statement issued at the end of October.
The US government has been pressuring the Ethiopian government in connection with the war, and the country's tax-free benefits have been repeatedly questioned.
The Ethiopian government has long argued that the move was inappropriate and would hurt people working in the industry.
Recently, members of the US House of Representatives wrote a letter to President Joe Biden denouncing his administration's decision to exclude Ethiopia from AGOA.
At the time of the resolution, the Ethiopian government's Ministry of Trade and Regional Relations expressed regret over the US government's decision to suspend Ethiopia from AGOA.
In addition to Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea have been included in the US decision to suspend tax-free trade benefits to African countries.
The United States and human rights groups have long claimed responsibility for a series of deadly attacks in northern Ethiopia.
In a related development, the US government announced a visa ban for Ethiopian and Eritrean officials several months ago, and President Biden signed an order to take action.
The Ethiopian government has repeatedly said that the US action is biased and unfair.
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