Today, Deputy United States Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis concluded his visit to East Africa with a stop in Nairobi, Kenya. On Friday, Ambassador Marantis met with Kenyan Minister of Trade Moses Wetang’ula and discussed the growing U.S.-Kenya bilateral trade relationship, and the U.S.-East African Community (EAC) Trade and Investment Partnership. They also discussed the recent renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act's (AGOA) Third Country Fabric provision and its role in the employment of tens of thousands of Kenyan women.
Following the meeting with Minister Wetang’ula on Friday, Ambassador Marantis participated in the U.S.-EAC trade ministerial meeting, in which the two sides made substantial progress on each component of the partnership, including the establishment of a Commercial Dialogue.
Ambassador Marantis meets with AGOA exporters at "COMPETE," the East and
Central African Trade Hub
Today, Ambassador Marantis opened the Third Annual African AmCham Summit, during which he highlighted the growing opportunities for U.S.-Africa trade and investment and the important role the American and African private sectors play. Ambassador Marantis also met with a number of AGOA exporters which have been supported by “COMPETE,” the East and Central African Trade Hub. COMPETE works to increase trade and investment between the United States and East Africa and reduce barriers to regional and international trade. Following his visit to the Trade Hub, Ambassador Marantis toured Butterfly Properties, a real estate construction and development company, to personally witness how U.S. exports to Africa can create jobs in the United States and support economic growth in Africa. Butterfly imports molds from Waffle-Crete International, a Kansas-based concrete firm, to introduce new U.S. building technology in Kenya. The technology is expected to revolutionize the building industry in Kenya by creating safer, greener, and stronger structures at a faster rate than traditional building.
Ambassador Marantis tours Butterfly Properties in Nairobi, Kenya
Ambassador Marantis then met with Trademark East Africa, a multi-donor funded organization devoted to enhancing East African regional and international trade. Ambassador Marantis concluded his visit to East Africa by delivering remarks to U.S. and local business leaders at the African AmCham Summit reception. In his remarks, he underscored the strength of the U.S.-Africa economic relationship and the benefits of two-way trade and investment between Africa and the United States.
