Letter to Congress in Support of the “Increasing American Jobs Through Greater Exports to Africa Act of 2012"
May 24, 2012
TO THE MEMBERS OF THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS:
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than three million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region, urges you to support H.R. 4221 and S. 2215, the “Increasing American Jobs Through Greater Exports to Africa Act of 2012.” This legislation would help U.S. companies doing business in sub-Saharan Africa compete for market share in some of the world’s fastest growing economies.
Gaining better access to these markets is of increasing strategic importance to the United States, both in terms of rates of return and sheer commercial potential. Over the past decade, six of the ten fastest growing economies in the world have been in sub-Saharan Africa. Demographic trends suggest that by 2050 one in four workers in the world will be African, and the continent’s population will top one billion.
It is time for the United States to open new avenues to help American companies go head to head with their competitors in Africa. Over the last 10 years, trade with Africa from China, India, and Brazil has increased eight-fold. Over the same period, U.S. trade with Africa has increased by a multiple of only three. The U.S. Export-Import Bank’s support for U.S. export sales to sub-Saharan Africa has risen from an average of $455 million annually in FY 2006-2009 to more than $1.4 billion in FY 2011. However, China’s export credit agency has committed more than $6 billion annually in recent years.
The Chamber also supports the legislation’s recognition of the U.S. Commercial Service’s vital role helping companies operating in emerging markets. However, just as many in the U.S. business community are beginning to focus on Africa in earnest, the Commercial Service’s footprint on the continent is shrinking. If this decline is not reversed, American firms will pay a price in lost deals and decreased competitiveness.
The United States has fallen behind in commercial engagement with Africa. Congress has an opportunity to reverse this decline while promoting job creation in both the United States and sub-Saharan Africa and supporting American companies’ interests on the continent. The Chamber urges you to support H.R. 4221 and S. 2215, the “Increasing American Jobs Through Greater Exports to Africa Act of 2012.”
Sincerely,
R. Bruce Josten
