Courtesy of BBC online:

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US liberalises trade



Zimbabwe and Cuba have been excluded

US President Bill Clinton has announced that 34 African countries will benefit from a liberalisation of United States import regulations and will now have increased duty-free access to the American market.  
Fourteen African nations have been excluded because they were deemed politically unstable or had not carried out economic reforms.  
Excluded nations
Angola
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Democratic Republic of Congo
Comoros
Equatorial Guinea
Gambia
Ivory Coast
Liberia
Somalia
Sudan
Swaziland
Togo
Zimbabwe
US officials said Sierra Leone qualified for trade privileges but they would be delayed because of fighting.  
A bill extending trade benefits was passed through Congress in May after complaints that it would harm the American garment industry.  
Mr Clinton has now named the 58 countries in Africa, the Caribbean and Central America which would benefit from the measure aimed at improving US trade with many of the world's poorest nations.  
Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda are among the beneficiaries of the policy, which will affect a wide range of products from footwear to canned tuna and eventually to other clothing items.  
Kenya and Mauritius, restrictive quotas will be lifted, provided they can show they can control illegal transhipments from countries like China.  
Clinton victory  
Mr Clinton visited Africa in 1998 and the passing of the bill was a major victory for his trade policy.  
He said the initiative would "help promote economic development, alleviate global poverty, and create new economic opportunities for American workers and businesses."  
US estimates say African-made clothing exports could increase from US$250m to $4.2b in the next eight years.  
Objections  
But critics say the legislation does not go far enough.  
They complain it sets limits on imports of textiles from eligible countries which have been put in place to protect American industry.  
Some African officials have also complained that qualification criteria set by the US government for eligibility impinge on their sovereignty.  


Fighting in Sierra Leone will delay implementation

For years campaigners on behalf of third world countries have been lobbying the American government to improve access to the lucrative US market.  
The main bone of contention has been textiles, where a number of countries in Africa, the Caribbean and Central America are able to produce quality goods at lower cost than American manufacturers.  
Government proposals ran into trouble in Congress, with the bill's opponents complaining that it would harm American garment workers, and that cheap textiles from Asia -- and from China in particular -- would be smuggled in through Africa to evade high tariffs. ___________________________________________________________
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