[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 115 (Wednesday, June 16, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33661-33662]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-13549]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

[Investigation No. 332-415]


U.S. Trade and Investment With Sub-Saharan Africa

AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.

ACTION: Notice of preparation of fifth report and opportunity to submit 
information and comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Following receipt on March 12, 2000, of a letter from the 
United States Trade Representative (USTR), the Commission instituted 
investigation No. 332-415, U.S. Trade and Investment with Sub-Saharan 
Africa, under section 1332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 
1332(g)) for the purpose of preparing a series of five annual reports. 
This is the fifth and final report in the series, and the Commission 
plans to transmit this fifth report to the USTR by December 10, 2004.

DATES: Effective Date:
    June 9, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nannette Christ, Office of Economics 
(202-205-3263), or William Gearhart, Office of the General Counsel 
(202-205-3091) for information on legal aspects of the investigation. 
The media should contact Margaret O'Laughlin, Office of External 
Relations (202-205-1819). Hearing impaired individuals are advised that 
information on this matter can be obtained by contacting the TDD 
terminal on 202-205-1810. Persons with mobility impairments who will 
need special assistance in gaining access to the Commission should 
contact the Office of the Secretary 202-205-2000. General information 
about the Commission may be obtained by accessing its Internet server 
(http://www.usitc.gov). The public record for this investigation may be 
viewed on the Commission's electronic docket (EDIS) http://edis.usitc.gov.
    Background: The USTR requested that the Commission prepare a series 
of annual reports for five years containing the following information:
    1. For the last five years (and the latest quarter available), data 
on U.S. merchandise trade and services trade with sub-Saharan Africa 
(SSA), including statistics by country, by major sectors, and by the 
top 25 commodities.
    2. A summary of U.S. and total foreign direct investment and 
portfolio investment in sub-Saharan Africa.
    3. Statistical information on U.S. imports from sub-Saharan Africa 
under the AGOA and GSP programs, by country and by major product 
categories/commodities, and information on AGOA-related investment.
    4. Updates on regional integration organizations in sub-Saharan 
Africa including statistics on U.S. trade with major regional groupings 
(ECOWAS, WAEMU, COMESA, SADC, SACU, EAC, IGAD, IOC, and CEMAC) and, 
where applicable, information on each group's tariff structure.
    5. A description of major U.S. trade capacity-building initiatives 
related to SSA, a summary of multilateral and U.S. bilateral assistance 
to the countries of sub-Saharan Africa, and, where applicable, a 
description of major non-U.S. trade preference programs for countries 
in SSA.
    6. Sector profiles for sub-Saharan Africa, including information on 
trade, investment, industry and policy developments, by major sector. 
The six sector profiles in this investigation include: agricultural, 
fisheries and forest products; chemicals; petroleum and energy-related 
products; minerals and metals; textiles and apparel; and certain 
transportation equipment.
    7. Country-by-country profiles on each of the 48 countries in sub-
Saharan Africa, including information on major trading partners, by 
country. Summary of the economic, trade, and investment climates in 
each of the countries of sub-Saharan Africa, including a description of 
the basic tariff structure (e.g., the average tariff rate and the 
average

[[Page 33662]]

agricultural tariff rate), as well as significant impediments to trade, 
such as import bans.
    The 48 countries of sub-Saharan Africa covered in this 
investigation include: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, 
Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, 
Democratic Republic of the Congo, C[ocirc]te d'Ivoire, Djibouti, 
Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, 
Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, 
Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Republic of 
the Congo, Rwanda, S[atilde]o Tom[eacute] and Principe, Senegal, 
Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, 
Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
    The USTR requested that the Commission provide its first report by 
December 10, 2000, and annually for a period of 4 years thereafter. The 
second report in the series was delivered to USTR on December 10, 2001; 
and the third report was delivered on December 10, 2002; the fourth 
report was delivered to USTR on December 19, 2003. The Commission 
expects to deliver the fifth report by December 10, 2004.
    Written Submissions: The Commission does not plan to hold a public 
hearing in connection with this fifth report. However, interested 
persons are invited to submit written statements concerning matters to 
be addressed in the report. Commercial or financial information that a 
person desires the Commission to treat as confidential must be 
submitted in accordance with section 201.6 of the Commission's Rules of 
Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.6). The Commission may include such 
confidential business information in the report it sends to USTR. All 
written submissions must conform with the provisions of section 201.8 
of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.8). The 
Commission's Rules do not authorize filing of submissions with the 
Secretary by facsimile or electronic means, except to the extent 
permitted by section 201.8 of the Commission's Rules. All written 
statements, except for confidential business information will be made 
available for inspection by interested persons in the Office of the 
Secretary to the Commission. Section 201.8 of the rules require that a 
signed original (or a copy designated as an original) and fourteen (14) 
copies of each document be filed. In the event that the confidential 
treatment of the document is requested, at least four (4) additional 
copies must be filed, in which the confidential information must be 
deleted. Section 201.6 of the rules require that the cover of the 
document and the individual pages clearly be marked as to whether they 
are the ``confidential'' or ``nonconfidential'' version, and that the 
confidential business information be clearly identified by means of 
brackets. To be assured of consideration, written statements relating 
to the Commission's report should be submitted at the earliest possible 
date and should be received not later than July 26, 2004. All 
submissions should be addressed to the Secretary, United States 
International Trade Commission, 500 E Street, SW., Washington DC 20436.
    Persons with mobility impairments who will need special assistance 
in gaining access to the Commission should contact the Office of the 
Secretary at 202-205-2000.

    Issued: June 10, 2004.

    By order of the Commission.
Marilyn R. Abbott,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 04-13549 Filed 6-15-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P