 |
| President Barrack Obama during his trip in Tanzania |
WASHINGTON D.C: Jay Ireland, President & CEO of GE
Africa was named as chair of the second President’s Advisory Council on Doing
Business in Africa (PAC-DBIA) by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker.
PAC-DBIA members – representing small, medium,
and large companies from a variety of industry sectors – advise the
President, through the Secretary of Commerce, on ways to strengthen
commercial engagement between the United States and Africa.
"Building stronger commercial relationships with some of the world's
fastest growing economies in Africa continues to be a top priority for the
Obama administration," said Secretary Pritzker. "Private sector
engagement through initiatives like the PAC-DBIA is driving our efforts to
expand trade, speed investments, build new technologies, and grow new and
transformative industries across Africa."
The appointments are announced in conjunction with the second U.S.-Africa
Business Forum. This historic event connects hundreds of American and African
chief executive officers and business leaders, along with African heads of
state, to discuss overall economic growth and to stimulate additional trade
and investment between the United States and Africa.
The varied, diverse, and accomplished appointees of the 2016-2018 President’s
Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa include Jay Ireland,
President and CEO, GE Africa* (Chair),
Laura Lane, President of Global Public Affairs, UPS (Vice
Chair), Walé Adeosun, Founder and Chief Investment Officer,
Kuramo Capital Management and Mimi Alemayehou, Managing Director, Black
Rhino Group; and Executive Advisor and Chair, Blackstone Africa
Infrastructure LP
Others
are Kimberly Brown, CEO, Amethyst Technologies, Takreem El-Tohamy, General
Manager of Middle East and Africa, IBM, Peter Grauer, Chairman,
Bloomberg LP, Diane Hoskins, Co-CEO, Gensler, Denise Johnson,
President, Caterpillar Resource Industries and Kusum Kavia, President,
Combustion Associates, Inc.
As part of his commitment to deepen engagement
between the United States and Africa, President Obama signed an Executive
Order (E.O.) at the 2014 U.S.-Africa Business Forum to establish PAC-DBIA.
The PAC-DBIA has provided information, analysis, and recommendations on
U.S.-Africa trade and investment priorities.
Such priorities include job creation in both the
United States and Africa, developing sustainable commercial partnerships,
building entrepreneur capacity, and keeping the private sector engaged in
developing policies and strategies on investment in Africa. Highlights of the
previous PAC-DBIA’s recommendations include launching the institutional
investor roadshow with several African countries and convening an East Africa
cold chain symposium.
U.S. merchandise exports to sub-Saharan Africa increased 19 percent from 2009
to 2015, reaching more than $18 billion last year. Total U.S. exports of
goods and services to the continent of Africa reached $42 billion in 2015,
representing total growth of 17 percent in the same period.
In addition, between 2009 and 2015, U.S. goods
exports to five sub-Saharan African countries – Ethiopia, Togo, Mauritania,
Burkina Faso, and South Sudan – and U.S. goods exports to an additional five
countries have increased more than 50 percent – Mali, Swaziland, Sierra
Leone, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Benin.
Speaking on the appointment, Jay Ireland said “I am truly honored to continue
serving on the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa.
“I am delighted to chair this group strengthening commercial links between
Africa and U.S. for economic growth. GE is proud to remain a steadfast
partner in Africa's sustainable growth and will continue to invest in people
and infrastructure across Africa."
|
Maoni
Chapisha Maoni