Browse: Departments Dates Agencies
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Trade Representative, Office of United States
NOTICE: NOTICES
ACTION: African Growth and Opportunity Act; implementation:
DOCUMENT ACTION: Notice.
SUBJECT CATEGORY: Determinations Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act
DATES: Effective December 17, 2003.
DOCUMENT SUMMARY: The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has determined
that Niger has adopted an effective visa system and related procedures
to prevent unlawful transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents
in connection with shipments of textile and apparel articles and has
implemented and follows, or is making substantial progress toward
implementing and following, the customs procedures required by the
African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Therefore, imports of eligible
[[Page 70334]]
products from Niger qualify for the textile and apparel benefits
provided under the AGOA.
SUMMARY: Niger; benefits eligibility determination,
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
The AGOA (Title I of the Trade and Development Act of 2000, Pub. L. 106200) provides preferential tariff treatment for imports of certain textile and apparel products of beneficiary subSaharan African countries. The textile and apparel trade benefits under the AGOA are available to imports of eligible products from countries that the President designates as ``beneficiary subSaharan African countries,'' provided that these countries: (1) Have adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent unlawful transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents; and (2) have implemented and follow, or are making substantial progress toward implementing and following, certain customs procedures that assist the Customs Service in verifying the origin of the products.In Proclamation 7350 (Oct. 2, 2000), the President designated Niger as a ``beneficiary subSaharan African country.'' Proclamation 7350 delegated to the USTR the authority to determine whether designated countries have met the two requirements described above. The President directed the USTR to announce any such determinations in the Federal Register and to implement them through modifications of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS). Based on actions that Niger has taken, I have determined that Niger has satisfied these two requirements.
Accordingly, pursuant to the authority vested in the USTR by
Proclamation 7350, U.S. note 7(a) to subchapter II of chapter 98 of the
HTS and U.S. note 1 to subchapter XIX of chapter 98 of the HTS are each
modified by inserting ``Niger'' in alphabetical sequence in the list of
countries. The foregoing modifications to the HTS are effective with
respect to articles entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for
consumption, on or after the effective date of this notice. Importers
claiming preferential tariff treatment under the AGOA for entries of
textile and apparel articles should ensure that those entries meet the
applicable visa requirements. See Visa Requirements Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act, 66 FR 7837 (2001).
Robert B. Zoellick,
United States Trade Representative.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT Patrick Coleman, Director for African Affairs, Office of the United States Trade Representative, (202) 395 9514.
Common CFR Searches
14 CFR Part 39 40 CFR Part 52 14 CFR Part 71 33 CFR Part 165 50 CFR Part 679 47 CFR Part 73 26 CFR Part 1 40 CFR Part 180 33 CFR Part 117 50 CFR Part 17 44 CFR Part 67 50 CFR Part 648 14 CFR Part 97 33 CFR Part 100 40 CFR Part 63 50 CFR Part 622 44 CFR Part 65 50 CFR Part 660 26 CFR Part 301 39 CFR Part 111 40 CFR Part 300 6 CFR Part 5 40 CFR Part 271 47 CFR Part 64 40 CFR Parts 52 and 81 50 CFR Part 665 44 CFR Part 64 10 CFR Part 50 49 CFR Part 571 47 CFR Part 76