EditorEXECUTIVE Director, US-Nigeria Trade Council, Mr Titus Olowokere, has charged entrepreneurs in developing countries to familiarise themselves with the United States compliance mechanisms to facilitate successful trade processes.
He gave the advice at a webinar with the theme: “Trading with the USA: Opportunities, Regulations and Compliance Imperatives. – Tips for entrepreneurs from developing countries” on Saturday.
Olowokere, noting that the United States of America (USA) was the biggest single trading nation of the world, said the country had trade relations with more than 200 countries, territories and regional associations globally.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelHe charged developing countries to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act(AGOA), which he said was the core of US economic policy and commercial engagement since 2000.
“By providing new market opportunities, AGOA has helped bolster economic growth, promoted economic and political reforms, and improved U.S economic relations in the region.
“38 countries are eligible for the AGOA benefits in 2020, and in 2015, the Congress passed legislation modernizing and extending the program to 2025 and in many ways, the approach aligns with the ‘trade not aid’ mantra,” he said.
Olowokere listed the path to getting goods into the US to include clearance with U.S Customs, and with Food and Drug Administration agency among others.
He stressed that there were numerous things to avoid, the most important of which was to not lie to the authorities to avoid jail terms of up to five years for each lie.
“Country of origin labelling requires all processed food labels to indicate the country to which final processing occurred.
“Regarding foreign government certification, FDA would be able to require food to be certified as meeting all U.S. food safety requirements by the government of the country from which the article originated or by certain qualified third parties.
“Safety plans require all food facilities operating within the U.S. or importing food to the U.S. to implement safety plans that identify and protect against food hazards and gives FDA the authority to specify minimum food safety plan requirements and audit food safety plans.
“Hazard mitigation efforts direct FDA to identify industry and regulatory approaches to minimize hazards in the food supply,” he said.
Olowokere tasked businesses to do their due diligence in identifying and developing potential U.S trade buyers by consulting certified databases that have information on businesses and relating with trade missions to facilitate trade.
“Unfortunately, the U.S does not have a federal agency, which all businesses are required to register with.
“While publicly traded companies file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), privately held companies do not have to make this information available to the public.
“However, all corporations have to register with a government body (usually the Secretary of State, or Department of Business or Corporations) in whichever state they incorporated in.
“These businesses have certain documents available for free or purchase through the relevant state government authority.
“An additional resource is the Better Business Bureau (BBB), which accredits US businesses, organizations, and charities that meet its standards,” he said.
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