[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 9]
[House]
[Pages 11971-11975]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      AGOA ENHANCEMENT ACT OF 2015

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 2845) to promote access to benefits under the African Growth and 
Opportunity Act, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2845

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``AGOA Enhancement Act of 
     2015''.

     SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the policy of the United States to support efforts 
     to--
       (1) improve the rule of law, promote free and fair 
     elections, strengthen and expand the private sector, and 
     fight corruption in sub-Saharan Africa; and
       (2) promote the role of women in social, political, and 
     economic development in sub-Saharan Africa.

     SEC. 3. ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF TRANSPARENCY.

       (a) AGOA Website.--
       (1) In general.--The President shall establish a website 
     for the collection and dissemination of information regarding 
     the African Growth and Opportunity Act (in this section 
     referred to as the ``AGOA website'').
       (2) Contents.--The President shall publish on the AGOA 
     website the information described in paragraph (1), 
     including--
       (A) information and technical assistance provided at United 
     States Agency for International Development regional trade 
     hubs; and
       (B) a link to websites of United States embassies located 
     in eligible sub-Saharan African countries.
       (3) Actions by united states embassies.--The Secretary of 
     State should direct United States embassies located in 
     eligible sub-Saharan African countries to--
       (A) promote the use by such countries of the benefits 
     available under the African Growth and Opportunity Act; and
       (B) include on a publicly available Internet website of 
     such diplomatic missions a link to the AGOA website.
       (b) AGOA Forum.--The President should, after each meeting 
     of the United States-Sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic 
     Cooperation Forum, publish on the AGOA website established 
     under subsection (a) the following:
       (1) All outcomes of the meeting of the Forum, including any 
     commitments made by member countries and the private sector.
       (2) An assessment of progress made with respect to any 
     commitments made by member countries and the private sector 
     from the previous meeting of the Forum.
       (c) Other Information.--The President should disseminate 
     information required by this section in a digital format to 
     the public and publish such information on the AGOA website 
     established under subsection (a).
       (d) Definition.--In this section, the term ``eligible sub-
     Saharan African country'' means a country that the President 
     has determined meets the eligibility requirements set forth 
     in section 104 of the African Growth and Opportunity Act.

     SEC. 4. ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF TRADE CAPACITY BUILDING.

       (a) In General.--The President should take the following 
     actions:
       (1) Develop and implement policies to--
       (A) encourage and facilitate trans-boundary cooperation 
     among eligible sub-Saharan African countries in order to 
     facilitate trade; and
       (B) encourage the provision of technical assistance to 
     eligible sub-Saharan African countries to establish and 
     sustain adequate trade capacity development.
       (2) Provide specific training for business in eligible sub-
     Saharan African countries and government trade officials of 
     eligible sub-Saharan African countries on utilizing access to 
     the benefits of the African Growth and Opportunity Act and 
     other trade preference programs.
       (3) Provide capacity building for African entrepreneurs and 
     trade associations on production strategies, quality 
     standards, formation of cooperatives, and market research and 
     market development.
       (4) Provide capacity building training to promote 
     diversification of African products and value-added 
     processing.
       (5) Provide capacity building and technical assistance 
     funding for African businesses and institutions to help such 
     businesses and institutions comply with United States 
     counter-terrorism initiatives and policies.
       (b) Definition.--In this section, the term ``eligible sub-
     Saharan African country'' means a country that the President 
     has determined meets the eligibility requirements set forth 
     in section 104 of the African Growth and Opportunity Act.

     SEC. 5. CONCURRENT COMPACTS UNDER THE MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE 
                   ACT OF 2003.

       (a) In General.--Section 609 of the Millennium Challenge 
     Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 7708) is amended--
       (1) by striking the first sentence of subsection (k);
       (2) by redesignating subsection (k) (as so amended) as 
     subsection (l); and
       (3) by inserting after subsection (j) the following:
       ``(k) Concurrent Compacts.--An eligible country that has 
     entered into and has in effect a Compact under this section 
     may enter into and have in effect at the same time not more 
     than one additional Compact in accordance with the 
     requirements of this title if--
       ``(1) one or both of the Compacts are or will be for 
     purposes of regional economic integration, increased regional 
     trade, or cross-border collaborations; and
       ``(2) the Board determines that the country is making 
     considerable and demonstrable progress in implementing the 
     terms of the existing Compact and supplementary agreements 
     thereto.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 613(b)(2)(A) of such Act 
     (22 U.S.C. 7712(b)(2)(A)) is amended by striking ``the'' 
     before ``Compact'' and inserting ``any''.
       (c) Applicability.--The amendments made by this section 
     apply with respect to Compacts entered into between the 
     United States and an eligible country under the Millennium 
     Challenge Act of 2003 before, on, or after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Royce) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Bass) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             general leave

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I would just begin by thanking Congresswoman Bass for her important 
work on this initiative. I am proud to have been part of the African 
Growth and Opportunity Act coalition. I have been part of that 
coalition since 2000, when we wrote the original bill.

[[Page 11972]]

  I would also just recognize Tom Sheehy for his contribution on this, 
our professional staff member.
  But AGOA allows African countries that respect the rule of law and 
respect free market principles to export many goods to the United 
States on a duty-free basis. The program has boosted Africa's economic 
growth, and especially benefiting women.
  I can tell you from my trips there and seeing the results, it has 
strengthened the trade relationship between the United States and 
Africa, which is several multiples today of what it was when the bill 
was originally passed.
  When Congress reauthorized AGOA earlier this year, I successfully 
pressed, along with my colleague Congresswoman Karen Bass, for a 10-
year extension; and this extension will provide U.S. and African 
businesses the certainty needed to build supply chains and deepen their 
strong trade relationships.

                              {time}  1745

  I also championed, as well as Karen Bass, the inclusion of country 
strategies in AGOA's reauthorization so that African countries could 
identify and make policy reforms to help them boost trade and take 
advantage of AGOA's provisions.
  This bill, the AGOA Enhancement Act, includes important measures that 
seek, thus, to improve trade capacity building, to increase the ability 
of African companies to export to the United States and improve trade 
facilitation, to help remove the bureaucratic barriers and the needless 
red tape that thwarts trade.
  So this bill would, first, grant more flexibility to the Millennium 
Challenge Corporation--a U.S. development agency--to support regional 
efforts to bolster trade; leveraging the Internet so that companies on 
both sides of the Atlantic can learn about how to utilize AGOA; and 
foster U.S.-African private sector engagement. It will put the trade 
hubs online, giving African businesses that are not near the existing 
trade hubs the information that they need to send their exports to the 
United States. And, lastly, this bill will increase transparency of the 
pledges and results made by the U.S. and African leaders at the AGOA 
Forum, an annual meeting of government and business leaders looking to 
increase U.S.-Africa trade.
  So with these measures, we can help African countries and businesses 
fully utilize the benefits offered through AGOA.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

                                    U.S. House of Representatives,


                                 Committee on Foreign Affairs,

                                Washington, DC, September 2, 2016.
     Hon. Kevin Brady,
     Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: Thank you for consulting with the 
     Committee on Foreign Affairs on H.R. 2845, the AGOA 
     Enhancement Act, and for deciding to forgo a sequential 
     referral request on that bill.
       I agree that your forgoing further action on this measure 
     does not in any way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of 
     your Committee, or prejudice its jurisdictional prerogatives 
     on this bill or similar legislation in the future. I would 
     support your effort to seek appointment of an appropriate 
     number of conferees to any House-Senate conference involving 
     this legislation.
       I will seek to place our letters on H.R. 2845 into the 
     Congressional Record during floor consideration of the bill. 
     I appreciate your cooperation regarding this legislation and 
     look forward to continuing to work with your Committee as 
     this measure moves through the legislative process.
           Sincerely,
                                                  Edward R. Royce,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                      Committee on Ways and Means,


                                U.S. House of Representatives,

                                Washington, DC, September 6, 2016.
     Hon. Edward R. Royce,
     Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Royce, I am writing with respect to H.R. 
     2845, the ``AGOA Enhancement Act of 2015.'' As a result of 
     your having consulted with us on this legislation, I agree 
     not to request a sequential referral on this bill so that it 
     may proceed expeditiously to the House floor.
       The Committee on Ways and Means takes this action with the 
     mutual understanding that by forgoing formal consideration of 
     H.R. 2845, we do not waive any jurisdiction over the subject 
     matter contained in this or similar legislation, and the 
     Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as the 
     bill or similar legislation moves forward so that we may 
     address any remaining issues that fall within our Rule X 
     jurisdiction. The Committee also reserves the right to seek 
     appointment of an appropriate number of conferees to any 
     House-Senate conference involving this or similar 
     legislation, and requests your support for such request.
       Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter 
     confirming this understanding, and would ask that a copy of 
     our exchange of letters on this matter be included in the 
     Congressional Record during floor consideration thereof.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Kevin Brady,
                                                         Chairman.

  Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise in support of H.R. 2845, the AGOA Enhancement Act of 2015. 
This critical bill complements, supports, and empowers the reauthorized 
African Growth and Opportunity Act that was passed into law last June.
  I want to thank Ranking Member Engel, Chairman Royce, and Speaker 
Ryan for their leadership on this.
  I also believe in the last piece of legislation I heard the chairman 
say that Nilmini Rubin is leaving us. I am very disappointed to hear 
that, but I do want to really compliment her for all of her efforts not 
just on AGOA, but also on the piece of legislation that we just passed. 
She will be sorely missed.
  I also want to compliment Margot Sullivan, who worked many, many, 
many hours on AGOA that we reauthorized as well as the AGOA Enhancement 
Act.
  By way of background, AGOA is the foundation of the U.S.-Africa 
economic platform. AGOA, a trade preference program, can help to grow 
and stabilize jobs in eligible participating countries throughout Sub-
Saharan Africa and in the U.S. AGOA has definitely helped to increase 
African exports to the U.S., and it has also helped to raise Africa's 
economic profile in this country.
  Further, AGOA has helped maintain and increase employment, generating 
approximately 350,000 direct jobs and 1 million indirect jobs in Sub-
Saharan Africa and approximately 100,000 jobs in the U.S.
  With the tremendous potential of a growing middle class in several 
African countries, plus the growth of regional economic communities on 
the continent, Africa has become one of the most dynamic global 
marketplaces. Why? Because each of these regional economic communities 
encompasses a number of countries that are evolving into regional 
economic powerhouses with huge markets of millions of upwardly mobile 
populations interested in quality goods and services.
  This is why Sub-Saharan Africa is currently one of the most dynamic 
global marketplaces. Countries such as China, India, Turkey, and the 
European Union recognize that doing business with Africa is 
increasingly critical and good for their bottom lines.
  Ironically, most African countries look to the U.S. to play a leading 
role in trade and investment with Sub-Saharan Africa, yet we hear 
repeatedly from officials, business people, and academics from the 
region, that while several African countries do considerable business 
with other countries, they do so because these countries are seeking to 
do business with Africa. These same observers note candidly that U.S. 
products, maintenance arrangements, and capacity building opportunities 
are by far more superior.
  It is with these experiences in mind that AGOA stakeholders in the 
House under the leadership of Chairman Royce and others supported the 
reauthorization of AGOA last year. This is also why the passage of the 
AGOA Enhancement Act--which strongly complements reauthorized AGOA--is 
equally as important.
  While the reauthorization is for 10 years, this was a giant step in 
the right direction. AGOA cannot live up to its full potential or be 
implemented as effectively as it must be without complementary 
legislation. AGOA will benefit from this complementary legislation as 
it has benefited from a host of initiatives such as the 
administration's signature Power Africa initiative and Feed the Future 
initiative, just to name a few.
  Arguably, AGOA cannot be fully effective without an increase in 
access to

[[Page 11973]]

electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa. Chairman Royce led the effort to 
pass Electrify Africa and proactively called for a multi-year strategy 
to assist countries in Sub-Saharan Africa address the power deficit. 
Africa's expanding cities and rural areas need access to considerable 
and reliable sources of electricity.
  Feed the Future is also central to building opportunity and 
development throughout the region. This innovative program helps to 
support critical food security in several nations by supporting family 
enterprises and by supporting smallholder farmers. Local farmers are 
able to lower risks to their farms, increasing yield and productivity 
and address threats posed by droughts, floods, and other natural 
disasters.
  The AGOA Enhancement Act helps to implement a more effective AGOA as 
it calls for the administration to establish an AGOA Web site to inform 
eligible AGOA-participating countries about critical information and 
technical assistance. H.R. 2845 also encourages the administration to 
support regional trade development in Sub-Saharan Africa by 
facilitating trans-boundary trade and providing crucial capacity 
building skills for entrepreneurs.
  One of the most important aspects of H.R. 2845 was originally a 
separate piece of legislation that I authored and is now included that 
enables eligible countries with Millennium Challenge Corporation 
compacts in good standing to enter simultaneously into one additional 
compact if the country is making considerable progress toward 
implementing the terms of the existing compacts. The other piece of 
this is that compacts can be used for regional economic integration.
  An example of MCC projects, I was recently in Liberia, and Liberia 
has an energy project that totals $201 million that will provide a new 
hydropower turbine to an existing facility, provide training to Liberia 
Economic Corporation employees, and help establish an independent 
regulator.
  In summary, by the establishment of an AGOA Web site, the 
prioritization of capacity training, and by encouraging greater 
regional economic integration, H.R. 2845 helps to promote and develop a 
stronger economic relationship between Sub-Saharan Africa and the 
United States, creating increased jobs and a win-win for both.
  Once again, I thank Chairman Royce for his distinguished leadership 
on this crucial issue.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I see the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Rangel) on the floor, also one of the original authors of the African 
Growth and Opportunity Act, along with Chairman Chris Smith and Ranking 
Member Karen Bass, one of the most engaged on initiatives to put Africa 
on the map for U.S. trade and investment.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. 
Smith), chairman of the Africa, Global Health, Global Human Right, and 
International Organizations Subcommittee, and I thank him for his 
assistance with this legislation.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Royce for his 
leadership on AGOA in general. I thank Karen Bass, who has worked 
doggedly for years, last year for the reauthorization. I see Mr. 
McDermott, who has also been so active over the years on this and 
critical to its passage at the beginning.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2845, the AGOA 
Enhancement Act. When the African Growth and Opportunity Act was 
enacted into law in May of 2000, it was intended to help eligible Sub-
Saharan African countries increase economic growth by providing duty-
free, quota-free access to U.S. markets for more than 6,400 items from 
meats to textiles and apparel, to petroleum, to leather goods. Because 
there were issues that needed to be addressed to enable AGOA to be more 
effective as intended, Congress has fine-tuned this important 
legislation since then and made adjustments several times to facilitate 
African exports to the United States.
  H.R. 2845 is the latest noble effort to make AGOA work for more 
African producers primarily by enhancing the technical assistance and 
information provided to African producers, including the establishment 
of a Web site to provide this information. People need to know what is 
available and how they can access this important treaty and its 
subsidies.
  The bill further allows for countries with the Millennium Challenge 
account grants to foster regional economic integration. It also targets 
inter-Africa trade, which is still less than 10 percent of all Africa 
international trade.
  My colleagues have explained other aspects of the bill in great 
detail, so I won't be redundant. But extending AGOA as we did in the 
last Congress was a laudable achievement but will not have the full 
intended effect if African producers have limited information or 
abilities to effectively take advantage of international trade 
opportunity. This is a job creator both in Africa and in the United 
States.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for his authorship.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I also wanted to recognize the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. McDermott). Mr. Jim McDermott was also one of the 
original authors of the AGOA legislation. He worked for many, many 
years to see it come to fruition.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I have to say that Mr. Rangel is one of the 
lions in this House. I have had the honor of serving with him for the 
last 6 years. He knows I am upset with him because he is choosing to 
retire. When I came here and really wanted to work on African issues, I 
sought out those two gentlemen, both Mr. Rangel and Mr. McDermott. I 
knew of their legacy. I knew of the work that they had done. I went to 
Mr. Rangel, and I told him I wanted to get involved in the 
reauthorization of AGOA and would he help me. We sat on the floor over 
there. He called over a bunch of Members and told them what I wanted to 
do, and the gentleman ordered them all to help me. We worked on it and 
were able to get it done.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Rangel).
  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, as I spend my final hours in this august 
body, I think of all of the fond memories that I have enjoyed. I guess 
during these political times, one of the things that I am enjoying the 
most today is shattering the myth that Republicans and Democrats really 
can't work with each other.
  Chairman Royce has indicated a concern for the world and the country, 
which shatters the myth that parties can't work together for the good 
of the United States of America. Certainly my colleague from New York, 
Eliot Engel, and the chairman have proven that in working together.
  Yes, when Ms. Bass first came to the Congress, she didn't come as an 
ordinary freshman. She had earned her stripes in the legislature of 
California, indeed was the speaker. I was a little shocked when she was 
trying to get support for her legislative committees that her interests 
would be foster care and Africa. That is unusual, but it is an 
indication of a person who comes here to this body with the type of 
commitment that makes you proud to be a Member of Congress and more 
proud even to be an American. There could be some connection between 
foster care and Africa because if there was any continent that has been 
treated as a foster child, it has been the developing countries in 
Africa.
  Of course, I see an old-timer sitting there with his white hair, Jim 
McDermott. I can wonder whether or not as a Peace Corps volunteer in 
Africa, whether among his fondest dreams, that he would be a Member of 
the House and creating a climate where people have dignity and pride 
and be able to be a part of the world rather than just being a resource 
for stronger countries.

                              {time}  1800

  I can think of nobody that has brought more to the committee than Mr. 
Williams and Rosa Whitfield in

[[Page 11974]]

working with Mr. Gingrich, in working with Mr. Crane, in working with 
Republicans, and how the leadership not only was able to get their 
sides but to see how the African Diplomatic Corps actually became the 
strongest lobbying force that we have had in the Congress as they found 
themselves pioneers in dealing with our great country that they loved 
so much and really had no understanding of why they didn't seem to be 
on our agenda.
  With AGOA, we knew it was just the beginning, we knew it was an 
opportunity. We take pride in the success that it has had, but we also 
know how far they had to come from behind.
  This enhancement piece of legislation has a lot of fancy words, but 
it sends out words to our embassies that this is American foreign 
policy. You don't just read the words. Make it work. Whether it is with 
the Millennium Challenge Corporation, whether it is with AID, whether 
it is giving information, whether it is helping them out, whether it is 
teaching them to learn, it is bringing them into the international 
trade.
  And what does it do? Is this a bill that just helped people in Africa 
escape poverty and disease? No. It helps the United States, and it 
helps the world. It helps people to be able to trade with each other, 
to talk with each other, to understand each other, and have compassion 
for each other. What a wonderful opportunity it is for the United 
States of America to look at a country that is struggling to enjoy the 
things that we believe in, to find out that now they don't have to 
lobby for it. Republicans and Democrats want what is best for the 
United States of America, and the developing countries in Africa need 
us so badly.
  There are a lot of reasons why I regret that I have to leave the 
Congress and retire to go back home, but knowing that I leave behind 
such people who are so dedicated, that are willing to go to the other 
party and give up a lot of their capital to make certain that the small 
countries in Africa appreciate the fact that we consider them an 
important part not only of our trade policy, our foreign policy, but, 
indeed, the policy of the United States of America.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Ms. Bass for the opportunity to express myself 
on this most important issue. And I thank Jim McDermott, who will be 
leaving--I don't know whether he is going back to Africa, but he won't 
be going back as a Peace Corps volunteer, I will tell you that. I thank 
him for his friendship.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned before, I have had the honor of 
serving with Mr. McDermott for the last 6 years, knowing that he was a 
Peace Corps volunteer in Africa. He was the one that led the effort 
around conflict minerals, something many people were concerned about in 
the country. They even made movies about the subject and all of the 
havoc that was wrought in many African countries because of conflict 
minerals. And also my work with him on child welfare issues and his 
legacy on both of those issues.
  I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott).
  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, it is kind of awesome to become a myth in 
your own time. I was not a Peace Corps volunteer. I was in Africa in 
1961 before the Peace Corps ever existed. When we were in Ghana in 
1961, the first Peace Corps volunteers arrived, so I was there when it 
all started.
  I also want to remind you--when you know the history of something, it 
is kind of interesting to listen to it--this started in 1995. We put a 
bill in and, actually, Speaker Gingrich got it out of the House. It 
passed the House in 2000. We couldn't get it through the Senate. It had 
to come back under Mr. Bush. Then we finally got it through the House 
and the Senate, and it became law.
  It has been an issue that everyone recognizes something needs to be 
done. As I look at this bill today, I read some of the language that 
the President is directed to provide training for business and 
government trade officials, provide capacity building for entrepreneurs 
and trade associations, and promote diversification of African 
products.
  Now, I don't know how many bills I have seen that in. What is missing 
here, unfortunately, in my view--I am going to support the bill, and 
the ideas of it are great, but what has been missing ever since 1995 or 
2000 has been a commitment of the resources to actually help the 
Africans figure out how to use our system.
  I can give you one example. There are shrimp all over the coastline. 
Now, why don't shrimp from Africa come into the United States? Because 
they can't pass the phytosanitary rules of our government. We won't let 
food come into this country that we think will be problematic for our 
people. So if we are going to actually help the Africans--we tried 
several times to get the Department of Agriculture to base people in 
some of the places along the coast, Senegal and some other places, in 
order to give them the instructions necessary to be able to bring those 
products in. What I hope will happen--and Charlie Rangel and I are 
going to leave the scene, and we did everything we could during the 
time we were here--for the rest of you, you have got to put some money 
in, put some money down on the ground.
  I had a project in one of the bills. Lions are a huge issue in 
Africa. If you want to have lions, and you want to have people go out 
and hunt them, well, if you kill a lion, it is only worth $800. But if 
you leave a lion there for tourism purposes, it is worth $50,000. So we 
have encouraged these countries to get the poachers to become game 
wardens and the women to run B&Bs out there, so we would have tourism 
which would bring foreign exchange into Africa to give them the ability 
to invest and do more.
  An epidemic of tuberculosis occurred in the African lions. There were 
only two people in all of Africa who had ever dealt with a big game 
animal, so we thought, let's start a school; we will start a veterinary 
school. We couldn't get the money. There are a lot of things that we 
could do with very small amounts of money in terms of helping them 
develop the capacity because the bill is filled with this capacity 
building. Give them the opportunity to develop capacity.
  But sometimes it takes a small investment on our part, and that is 
really what I hope will come. Maybe the bill will pass and then we can 
get a little bit of money into the Foreign Operations appropriations 
act and use it for that kind of program.
  I think this is a work in progress. It won't be done when I leave and 
Charlie leaves. I remember the first meeting Charlie and I had with the 
ambassadors from all of Africa. Nobody thought that it would ever 
happen. So we called them all up and said: Do you want to trade or do 
you want aid?
  They said: We want trade.
  We said: Okay. Come in here, in the office, and sign a paper.
  We got them to sign a paper where they all asked the President of the 
United States to give them a trade act. That is the only time it has 
ever occurred around here that I know of.
  So it has been there, and it has gradually developed, but more slowly 
than it could have. I hope that we will pass it and the message will 
get to the appropriators that a little bit of money could make this go 
a long way.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, as Mr. McDermott leaves, I will take his 
comments as my marching orders for what I am supposed to do in the next 
session, so I thank him very much.
  I would urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2845.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  In closing, I have been to the factories across Africa, and I have 
seen the women employed. I have seen how AGOA is improving economies in 
Africa. AGOA is making a difference and could have even more impact on 
the continent if the measures included in this AGOA Enhancement Act are 
implemented.
  This bill improves how we offer assistance through the Millennium 
Challenge Corporation to increase the ability of people in Africa to 
trade, and

[[Page 11975]]

helping cut the bureaucratic barriers and needless red tape that 
thwarts trade.
  This bill helps unlock the potential of AGOA so that people in Africa 
can strengthen their markets, and so Americans can improve trade 
relationships with countries in Africa. And yes, it has been slow 
going, slow progress. We have gotten a few more staffed positions from 
the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a few more ag inspectors positioned 
there. And Jim McDermott is right, we need to do more. We have been 
slow going, but we have more foreign commercial service officers now in 
these positions in AGOA.
  In 2 weeks' time, we will have the AGOA forum. We will again be 
bringing these issues up. In the following session, the effort will 
continue, as Jim McDermott laid it out, to see this through and to try 
to make AGOA as effective as we possibly can. In the interim, this 
legislation is a big step in the right direction.
  I really want to thank not only Congresswoman Karen Bass, but also my 
colleagues from their original efforts, Charlie Rangel and Jim 
McDermott, and urge a unanimous vote, again, in support of the 
extension of AGOA.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2845, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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