Improve AGOA Goods Quality, Urges Comesa

29 April 2011

THERE is need to improve the quality of products in the art industry so that exports to the United States of America (USA) under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) can increase in value and quantity.

Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) toolkit coordinator Edwin Zulu said curio products were constantly exported to the USA under AGOA but there had not been a deliberate move for capacity building to improve on the quality.

Mr Zulu said it was clear that one key sector AGOA was in support of was the art industry, hence the need for capacity building in the sector to fully exploit it.

He said by so doing, the quality of products by the Zambian artists would improve and the quantity would go up.

” AGOA promotes things like art, craft and curios, so as a country which wants to benefit from AGOA, we should encourage the production of good quality products with the capacity of meeting the America market standards,” he said.

Mr Zulu challenged the Zambian business community to take advantage of the AGOA and increase the country’s foreign earnings.

He said the country stood a better chance of increasing its exports and consequently foreign earnings through AGOA initiative.

He said AGOA was not a new initiative to Zambia or Africa and that it was time the country took advantage of the opportunities that the Act offers.

Mr Zulu said what was critical now was to sensitise the business community on what opportunities AGOA offers to increase knowledge of the participants.

The other area where AGOA has opportunities is the area of textiles but regretted that Zambia was struggling in that industry.

Mr Zulu noted that there was need for partnerships with the two countries, where Zambia would be producing raw materials, and the other countries could be processing them into finished products for the USA market.

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