President George W. Bush launched the Trade for Africa Development and Enterprise (TRADE) Initiative in October 2001. As part of this initiative, USAID's West Africa Regional Program (WARP) opened a West Africa Global Competitiveness Hub (WATH) in January 2003. WATH builds trade capacity in the region and helps governments and the private sector take advantage of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). WATH coordinates its work with international financial institutions, government agencies, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and multilateral and bilateral providers of technical assistance in the region. WATH works in four key areas:
- Trade Capacity Building: WATH assists West African nations and regional organizations such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) to increase international and intra-regional trade that will spur economic development. Key interventions include harmonizing sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures, customs-data harmonization, improving road transportation and supporting effective participation in the World Trade Organization (WTO).
- AGOA Export Development: WATH helps West African countries take advantage of AGOA by: (1) strengthening the capacity of firms to meet US market requirements in priority products and commodities: industrially-produced apparel, fish, shea butter, handicrafts (including hand-loomed textiles) and processed cashews, and (2) encouraging the public sector to create an environment conducive to trade in these products.
- AGOA Support Services: WATH provides information on AGOA and global trade through AGOA Resource Centers (ARCs) located throughout the region. WATH also provides technical assistance to governments and the private sector on procedural requirements such as how to obtain AGOA textile visas and certifications.
- Information Dissemination: Through its website, ARCs, press releases, newsletters and an enquiries desk, WATH provides the region with access to information on global trade.
BENEFICIARY COUNTRIES Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, and Togo.
PARTNERS
Major regional and national partners in the public and private sector for WATH include public bodies such as ECOWAS, WAEMU, Trade Ministries, AGOA Secretariats, West African embassies in Accra, Chambers of Commerce, tradeassociations, business leaders, private sector associations and experienced entrepreneurs. |
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ACCOMPLISHMENTS TO DATE
- Sponsored West African participation in trade missions to the U.S. in December 2003, May 2004 and August 2004 and prepared firms to market their products;
- Coordinated the first two exports of "Category 9" merchandise from Ghana under AGOA;
- Published an export guide for West African apparel manufacturers Conducted a regional supply-chain analysis and needs assessment for the shea-butter and cashew-nut sectors;
- Provided technical assistance to 12 countries: training, business-site visits, trade-mission assistance, business introductions (2,050 beneficiaries of whom 32% were women);
- Developed 15 training modules on AGOA and "Doing business with the US market", as well as guidelines for successful trade-show participation;
- Helped the government of Sierra Leone obtain a textile visa.
- Adapted, re-tooled and expanded 9 existing ARCs; created 4 new ARCs;
- Trained representatives from all ARCs to analyze trade competitiveness;
- Provided technical assistance to the Salon International de l'Artisanat de Ouagadougou and to Kente weavers in Ghana;
- Supported ECOWAS and WAEMU in developing a joint road-transport policy;
- Laid the groundwork with ECOWAS and WAEMU to develop appropriate SPS standards for West Africa.
Visit WATH's website at www.watradehub.org |
