[Federal Register: September 26, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 187)]
[Notices]
[Page 55709-55710]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr26se03-115]
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OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
African Growth and Opportunity Act Implementation Subcommittee of
the Trade Policy Staff Committee; Public Comments on Annual Review of
Country Eligibility for Benefits Under the African Growth and
Opportunity Act
AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The African Growth and Opportunity Act Implementation
Subcommittee of the Trade Policy Staff Committee (the ``Subcommittee'')
is requesting written public comments for the annual review of the
eligibility of sub-Saharan African countries to receive the benefits of
the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The Subcommittee will
consider these comments in developing recommendations on country
eligibility for the President. Comments received related to the child
labor criteria may also be considered by the Secretary of Labor for the
preparation of the Department of Labor's report on child labor as
required under section 412(c) of the Trade and Development Act of 2000.
This notice identifies the eligibility criteria that must be considered
under AGOA, lists the sub-Saharan African countries that are currently
eligible for AGOA, and the sub-Saharan African countries that are
currently ineligible for the AGOA.
DATES: Public comments are due at USTR by noon, Monday, October 20,
2003.
ADDRESSES: Submission by electronic mail: FR0098@ustr.gov. Submissions
by facsimile: Gloria Blue, Executive Secretary, Trade Policy Staff
Committee, at (202) 395-6143. The public is strongly encouraged to
submit documents electronically rather than by facsimile. See
requirements for submissions below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For procedural questions, please
contact Gloria Blue, Office of the United States Trade Representative,
600 17th Street, NW, Room F516, Washington, DC 20508, (202) 395-3475.
All other questions should be directed to Constance Hamilton, Senior
Director for African Affairs, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative,
600 17th Street, NW, Washington, DC, (202) 395-9514.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The AGOA (title I of Public Law 106-200)
amends Title V of the Trade Act of 1974
[[Page 55710]]
(19 U.S.C. 2461 et seq.) (the ``Trade Act'') to authorize the President
to designate sub-Saharan African countries as eligible for duty-free
tariff treatment for certain products under the Generalized System of
Preferences program (GSP). The AGOA also authorizes the President to
designate sub-Saharan African countries as eligible for the
preferential treatment the AGOA provides for certain textile and
apparel articles.
The President may designate a country as a beneficiary sub-Saharan
African country eligible for both the additional GSP benefits and the
textile and apparel benefits of the AGOA (if the country also meets
certain statutory requirements intended to prevent unlawful
transshipment of such articles) if he determines that the country meets
the eligibility criteria set forth in: (1) section 104 of the AGOA; and
(2) section 502 of the Trade Act. To date, 38 countries have been
designated as beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries. These
countries, as well as the 10 currently ineligible countries, are listed
below. Section 506A of the Trade Act provides that the President shall
monitor, review, and report to Congress annually on the progress of
each sub-Saharan African country in meeting the foregoing eligibility
criteria in order to determine the current or potential eligibility of
each country to be designated as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African
country. The President's determinations will be included in the annual
report submitted to Congress as required by Section 106 of the AGOA.
Section 506A of the Trade Act and section 104 of the AGOA require that,
if the President determines that an eligible sub-Saharan African
country is not making continual progress in meeting the eligibility
requirements, he must terminate the designation of the country as a
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country.
The Subcommittee is seeking public comments in connection with the
annual review of the eligibility of sub-Saharan African countries for
the AGOA's benefits. The Subcommittee will consider any such comments
in developing recommendations on country eligibility for the President.
Comments related to the child labor criteria may also be considered by
the Secretary of Labor in making the findings required under section
504 of the Trade Act.
Beneficiary Sub-Saharan African Countries
The following have been designated as beneficiary sub-Saharan
African countries:
Republic of Benin
Republic of Botswana
Republic of Cameroon
Republic of Cape Verde
Central African Republic
Republic of Chad
Republic of the Congo
Republic of C[ocirc]te d'Ivoire
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Republic of Djibouti
State of Eritrea
Ethiopia
Gabonese Republic
Republic of The Gambia
Republic of Ghana
Republic of Guinea
Republic of Guinea-Bissau
Republic of Kenya
Kingdom of Lesotho
Republic of Madagascar
Republic of Malawi
Republic of Mali
Islamic Republic of Mauritania
Republic of Mauritius
Republic of Mozambique
Republic of Namibia
Republic of Niger
Federal Republic of Nigeria
Republic of Rwanda
Democratic Republic of S[atilde]o Tom[egrave] and Principe
Republic of Senegal
Republic of Seychelles
Republic of Sierra Leone
Republic of South Africa
Kingdom of Swaziland
United Republic of Tanzania
Republic of Uganda
Republic of Zambia
Sub-Saharan African Countries Not Designated as Beneficiary Countries
The following have not been designated as beneficiary sub-Saharan
African countries:
Republic of Angola
Burkina Faso
Republic of Burundi
Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros
Republic of Equatorial Guinea
Republic of Liberia
Somalia
Republic of Togo
Republic of Sudan
Republic of Zimbabwe
Requirements for Submissions: In order to facilitate the prompt
processing of submissions, the Office of the United States Trade
Representative strongly urges and prefers electronic (e-mail) submissions to FR0098@ustr.gov in response to this notice. In the event
that an e-mail submission is impossible, submissions should be made by
facsimile. Persons making submissions by e-mail should use the
following subject line: ``2003 AGOA Annual Country Review.'' Documents
should be submitted as WordPerfect, MSWord, or text (.TXT) files.
Supporting documentation submitted as spreadsheets are acceptable as
Quattro Pro or Excel. For any document containing business confidential
information submitted electronically, the file name of the business
confidential version should begin with the characters ``BC-'' and the
file name of the public version should begin with the characters ``P-
''. The ``P-'' or ``BC-'' should be followed by the name of the
submitter. Persons who make submissions by e-mail should not provide
separate cover letters; information that might appear in a cover letter
should be included in the submission itself. Similarly, to the extent
possible, any attachments to the submission should be included in the
same file as the submission itself, and not as separate files.
Written comments will be placed in a file open to public inspection
pursuant to 15 CFR 2003.5, except confidential business information
exempt from public inspection in accordance with 15 CFR 2003.6.
Confidential business information submitted in accordance with 15 CFR
2003.6 must be clearly marked ``BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL'' at the top of
each page, including any cover letter or cover page, and must be
accompanied by a nonconfidential summary of the confidential
information. All public documents and nonconfidential summaries shall
be available for public inspection in the USTR Reading Room. The USTR
Reading Room is open to the public, by appointment only, from 10 a.m.
to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. An appointment
to review the file may be made by calling (202) 395-6186. Appointments
must be scheduled at least 48 hours in advance.
Carmen Suro-Bredie,
Chairman, Trade Policy Staff Committee.
[FR Doc. 03-24419 Filed 9-25-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3190-01-P