Aid in Action
USAID East Africa Launches the Competitiveness and Trade Expansion Program (COMPETE)
Regional Integration Key to Promoting Competitiveness and Trade
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Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Photo: USAID/EA
Dr. Flora Musonda, East African Community Director of Trade addressing the meeting at the COMPETE launch.
Representatives from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC) were among the forty+ partners at the April launch of the USAID Competitiveness and Trade Expansion Program, COMPETE, designed to facilitate increased trade and competitiveness in regional and global markets.
Africa contributes only three percent of the value of goods traded globally. Building capacity in local markets to make them more competitive will help to increase trade in regional and global markets and help to reduce poverty in the region.
COMPETE will work to:
- Reduce barriers to trade;
- Increase competitiveness and market access in selected value chains including staple foods, and;
- Increase trade and investment between the U.S. and Eastern and Central Africa (ECA) via the ECA Trade Hub.
COMPETE builds on the success of two prior USAID programs, the Regional Agriculture and Trade Expansion (RATES) program and the East African Community Trade Hub. By combining the best aspects of these programs, COMPETE takes a holistic approach to addressing the constraints and promoting the opportunities available to African companies to increase their competitiveness and trade with the United States and global markets. To much applause, USAID East Africa Regional Director Cheryl Anderson affirmed, “There is a great deal of exuberance and enthusiasm for this integrated approach.”
Left to right, Candace Buzzard, Director, Regional Economic Growth & Integration Office, USAID/EA, Pamela Slutz, Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy, Chungu Mwila, Director, COMESA Investment Promotion & Private Sector Development, and Anil Bhandari, Senior Advisor, Africa Region, World Bank, Kenya.
COMPETE will partner with private sector-led Regional Trade Associations, COMESA and the EAC to enhance competitiveness and trade in targeted sectors and create tools that will allow small farmers to participate more effectively in regional trade. The goal is to reduce barriers to trade and help firms adopt international quality standards that make them more competitive in regional and global markets.
COMPETE plans to promote a 15% reduction in the time and cost of transporting goods along selected transport corridors, and a 30% increase in value and volume of international trade and of intra-regional trade for targeted value chains. The tools, support and expertise offered through COMPETE make it an opportune time for Africa to take up the challenge.
EAC Director of Trade, Dr. Flora Musonda and COMESA Director of Investment, Promotion and Private Sector Development, Dr. Chungu Mwila pledged their support to ensure COMPETE’s success.
The U.S. Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission, Pamela Slutz, stressed COMPETE’s strategic importance for enhancing the competitiveness of African economies in trade and in investment, especially during challenging economic times. She also noted the timeliness of COMPETE, coinciding with the August Nairobi-based AGOA Forum.
COMPETE is planned for approximately four years for up to $84 million and is implemented by Chemonics International with Crimson Capital, Integrated Development Consultants, Dexis Consulting Group, Global Business Solutions and PRIME International.
For more information, please visit www.competeafrica.org.