Overview
The goal of the AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act) is to help spur economic growth and bolster economic reforms in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa and to foster stronger economic ties between the countries of sub-Saharan Africa and the United States.
Although the main purpose of the AGOA Bill is to promote trade and investment between the United States and Africa, the AGOA III Bill recognizes that one of the greatest challenges facing African countries today continues to be HIV/AIDS and malaria. Read excerpts from the AGOA III Bill.
Workshops
As such, several workshops were dedicated to the economic impact of HIV/AIDS in Africa. On July 19, 2005 two CCA members, Merck and Pfizer, gave presentations on the importance of public-private partnerships in public health.
During the workshop Improving Public Health: Access to Drugs: The Role of Public/private Partnerships, Anthony Carroll, Consultant at Merck; Ngozi Edozien, Regional Director at Pfizer West Africa; Roger Bate, Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute; and Mr. Demba Ba, Sector Manager for African Private Sector Development and Geralyn Ritter, Vice President International Affairs at Phrma focused their discussion on leveraging partnerships with governments, multisectoral institutions, the private sector and civil society. They also emphasized the importance of public/private partnerships and corporate social responsibility. Merck presented its ACHAP program in Botswana while Pfizer discussed its Diflucan initiative throughout Africa.
On Wednesday July 20, 2005 an AGOA special session entitled New Models, New Partnerships: Reclaiming Hope against the Impacts of HIV/AIDS was held at Le Meridien in Dakar. This special session was co-chaired by Ambassador Randall Tobias, the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and the Honorable Ezra Suruma, Minister of Finance for Uganda.
The panelists offered ideas to ensure successful contributions to a multi-sectoral response in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Mr. Tobias highlighted that an effective response must include the contributions of all sectors of society, including governments, civil society institutions, and the private sector. Mr. Tobias emphasized that only a locally owned, locally led response will be sustainable.
