Annual Review of Country Eligibility for Benefits Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act for Calendar Year 2024, 31579-31580 [2023-10480]

Agencies

• Office of the United States Trade Representative

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 95 (Wednesday, May 17, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31579-31580]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-10480]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

[Docket Number USTR-2023-0003]


Annual Review of Country Eligibility for Benefits Under the 
African Growth and Opportunity Act for Calendar Year 2024

AGENCY: Office of the United States Trade Representative.

ACTION: Notice of virtual public hearing and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is 
announcing the initiation of the annual review of the eligibility of 
sub-Saharan African countries to receive the benefits of the African 
Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The AGOA Implementation Subcommittee 
of the Trade Policy Staff Committee (AGOA Subcommittee) is requesting 
written public comments for this review and will conduct a virtual 
public hearing on this matter. In developing its recommendations for 
the President on AGOA country eligibility for calendar year 2024, the 
AGOA Subcommittee will consider the written comments, written 
testimony, and oral testimony.

DATES: 
    July 7, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. EDT: Deadline for submission of written 
comments, requests to testify, and written testimony, regarding the 
eligibility of countries to be designated as beneficiary sub-Saharan 
African countries.
    July 24, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. EDT: The AGOA Subcommittee will convene 
a virtual public hearing to receive oral testimony related to sub-
Saharan African countries' eligibility for AGOA benefits via WebEx.

ADDRESSES: The AGOA Subcommittee strongly prefers electronic 
submissions made through the Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov (Regulations.gov). Follow the instructions for 
submitting written comments and testimony and requests to testify in 
sections III and IV below, using Docket Number USTR-2023-0003. For 
alternatives to on-line submissions, please contact Jeremy Streatfeild, 
Director of African Affairs, Office of African Affairs, in advance of 
the relevant deadline at [email protected] or (202) 
395-8642.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeremy Streatfeild, Director of 
African Affairs, Office of African Affairs, at 
[email protected] or (202) 395-8642.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    AGOA (Title I of the Trade and Development Act of 2000, Pub. L. 
106-200) (19 U.S.C. 2466a et seq.), as amended, authorizes the 
President to designate sub-Saharan African countries as beneficiaries 
eligible for duty-free treatment for certain additional products not 
included for duty-free treatment under the Generalized System of 
Preferences (GSP) (title V of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2461 et 
seq.) (1974 Act), as well as for the preferential treatment for certain 
textile and apparel articles. The President may designate a country as 
a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country eligible for AGOA benefits if 
he determines that the country meets the eligibility criteria set forth 
in section 104 of AGOA (19 U.S.C. 3703) and section 502 of the 1974 Act 
(19 U.S.C. 2462).
    Section 104 of AGOA includes requirements that the country has 
established or is making continual progress toward establishing, among 
other things:
     a market-based economy;
     the rule of law;
     political pluralism;
     the right to due process;
     the elimination of barriers to U.S. trade and investment;
     economic policies to reduce poverty;
     a system to combat corruption and bribery, and;
     protection of internationally recognized worker rights.
    In addition, the country may not engage in activities that 
undermine U.S. national security or foreign policy interests or engage 
in gross violations of internationally recognized human rights. Section 
502 of the 1974 Act provides for country eligibility criteria under 
GSP. For a complete list of the AGOA eligibility criteria and more 
information on the GSP criteria, see section 104 of the AGOA and 
section 502 of the 1974 Act.
    Section 506A of the 1974 Act requires the President to monitor and 
annually review the progress of each sub-Saharan African country in 
meeting the foregoing eligibility criteria in order to determine if a 
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country should continue to be eligible, 
and if a sub-Saharan African country that currently is not a 
beneficiary, should be designated as a beneficiary. If the President 
determines that a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country is not making 
continual progress in meeting the eligibility requirements, the 
President must terminate the designation of the country as a 
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country. The President also may 
withdraw, suspend or limit the application of duty-free treatment with 
respect to specific articles from a country if he determines that it 
would be more effective in promoting compliance with AGOA eligibility 
requirements than terminating the designation of the country as a 
beneficiary sub-Saharan African country.
    For 2023 the President designated the following 35 countries as 
beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries:

1. Angola
2. Benin
3. Botswana
4. Cabo Verde
5. Central African Republic
6. Chad
7. Comoros
8. Democratic Republic of Congo
9. Republic of Congo
10. Cote d'Ivoire
11. Djibouti
12. Eswatini
13. Gabon
14. The Gambia
15. Ghana
16. Guinea-Bissau
17. Kenya
18. Lesotho
19. Liberia
20. Madagascar
21. Malawi
22. Mauritius
23. Mozambique
24. Namibia
25. Niger
26. Nigeria
27. Rwanda (AGOA apparel benefits suspended effective July 31, 2018)
28. Sao Tome & Principe
29. Senegal
30. Sierra Leone
31. South Africa
32. Tanzania
33. Togo
34. Uganda
35. Zambia

    The President did not designate the following sub-Saharan African 
countries as beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries for 2023:

1. Burkina Faso
2. Burundi
3. Cameroon
4. Equatorial Guinea (graduated from GSP; ineligible for 
consideration for AGOA benefits)

[[Page 31580]]

5. Eritrea
6. Ethiopia
7. Guinea
8. Mali
9. Mauritania
10. Seychelles (graduated from GSP; ineligible for consideration for 
AGOA benefits)
11. Somalia (requested consideration for AGOA benefits for the first 
time this year)
12. South Sudan
13. Sudan (did not request designation as an AGOA beneficiary 
country)
14. Zimbabwe

    The AGOA Subcommittee is requesting written public comments for 
this review and will conduct a virtual public hearing to develop 
recommendations to the President in connection with the annual review 
of sub-Saharan African countries' eligibility for AGOA benefits. The 
Secretary of Labor may consider comments related to the child labor 
criteria to prepare the U.S. Department of Labor's report on child 
labor as required under section 504 of the 1974 Act.

II. Hearing Participation

    The AGOA Subcommittee will convene a virtual public hearing to 
receive oral testimony related to sub-Saharan African countries' 
eligibility for AGOA benefits via WebEx on Monday, July 24, 2023, 
beginning at 10:00 a.m. EDT. Persons wishing to observe the public 
hearing will find a link on USTR's web page for sub-Saharan Africa on 
the day of the hearing at https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/africa.
    To ensure participation, you must submit requests to present oral 
testimony at the hearing and written testimony by midnight on July 7, 
2023, via Regulations.gov, using Docket Number USTR-2023-0003. 
Instructions for submission are in sections III and IV below. Remarks 
at the hearing will be limited to no more than five minutes to allow 
for possible questions from the AGOA Subcommittee. Because the hearing 
will be public, testimony should not include any business confidential 
information (BCI). USTR will provide a link in advance of the virtual 
hearing to persons wishing to testify.
    The AGOA Subcommittee requests small businesses (generally defined 
by the Small Business Administration as firms with fewer than 500 
employees) or organizations representing small business members that 
submit comments to self-identify as such, so that we may be aware of 
issues of particular interest to small businesses.

III. Procedures for Written Submissions

    To be assured of consideration, submit your written comments, 
requests to testify, and written testimony by the July 7, 2023, 11:59 
p.m. EDT deadline. All submission must be in English. The AGOA 
Subcommittee strongly encourages submissions via Regulations.gov, using 
Docket Number USTR-2023-0003.
    To make a submission via Regulations.gov, enter Docket Number USTR-
2023-0003 in the `search for' field on the home page and click 
`search.' The site will provide a search results page listing all 
documents associated with this docket. Find a reference to this notice 
by selecting `notice' under `document type' in the `refine documents 
results' section on the left side of the screen and click on the link 
entitled `comment.'
    Regulations.gov allows users to make submissions by filling in a 
`type comment' field or by attaching a document using the `upload file' 
field. The AGOA Subcommittee prefers that you provide submissions in an 
attached document and note `see attached' in the `comment' field on the 
online submission form. The AGOA Subcommittee prefers submissions in 
Microsoft Word (.doc) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). If you use an 
application other than those two, please indicate the name of the 
application in the `type comment' field.
    At the beginning of your submission or on the first page (if an 
attachment), include the following text: (1) 2024 AGOA Eligibility 
Review; (2) the relevant country or countries; and (3) whether the 
submission is a comment, request to testify, or written testimony. 
Submissions should not exceed 30 single-spaced, standard letter-size 
pages in 12-point type, including attachments. Please do not attach 
separate cover letters to electronic submissions; rather, include any 
information that might appear in a cover letter in the submission 
itself. Similarly, to the extent possible, please include any exhibits, 
annexes, or other attachments in the same file as the submission 
itself, not as separate files. You will receive a tracking number upon 
completion of the submission procedure at Regulations.gov. The tracking 
number is confirmation that Regulations.gov received your submission. 
Keep the confirmation for your records. USTR is not able to provide 
technical assistance for Regulations.gov.
    For further information on using Regulations.gov, please consult 
the resources provided on the website by clicking on `How to Use 
Regulations.gov' on the bottom of the home page. The AGOA Subcommittee 
may not consider submissions that you do not make in accordance with 
these instructions.
    If you are unable to provide submissions as requested, please 
contact Jeremy Streatfeild, Director of African Affairs, Office of 
African Affairs, in advance of the deadline at 
[email protected] or (202) 395-8642, to arrange for an 
alternative method of transmission. USTR will not accept hand-delivered 
submissions. General information concerning USTR is available at 
www.ustr.gov.

IV. Business Confidential Information (BCI) Submissions

    If you ask the AGOA Subcommittee to treat information you submit as 
BCI, you must certify that the information is business confidential and 
you would not customarily release it to the public. For any comments 
submitted electronically containing BCI, the file name of the business 
confidential version should begin with the characters `BCI.' You must 
clearly mark any page containing BCI with `BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL' at 
the top of that page. Filers of submissions containing BCI also must 
submit a public version of their submission that will be placed in the 
docket for public inspection. The file name of the public version 
should begin with the character `P.'

V. Public Viewing of Review Submissions

    USTR will post written submissions in the docket for public 
inspection, except properly designated BCI. You can view submissions at 
Regulations.gov by entering Docket Number USTR-2023-0003 in the search 
field on the home page.

William Shpiece,
Chair of the Trade Policy Staff Committee, Office of the United States 
Trade Representative.
[FR Doc. 2023-10480 Filed 5-16-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3390-F3-P