U.S. Africa Business Conference to be Held in Cincinnati, Ohio

Office of the Spokesperson
Department of State
Washington, DC

June 8, 2012

The State Department, in collaboration with several U.S. Government agencies, will host the U.S.-Africa Business Conference in Cincinnati, Ohio, June 21-22, following the annual U.S.-sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic Forum, commonly known as the AGOA Forum, in Washington, DC June 14-15. The AGOA Forum is the U.S. Government’s premier high-level event with sub-Saharan African countries and provides an opportunity to advance U.S. trade and economic policy goals. Echoing the theme of the AGOA Forum, the event will focus broadly on infrastructure development, including energy, transportation, and water and sanitation. The U.S.-Africa Business Conference aims to provide an opportunity to showcase U.S. business expertise to potential African clients, and to highlight trade and investment opportunities in Africa to U.S. exporters and investors.

The U.S.-Africa Business Conference will include structured networking opportunities for African government officials and business leaders with U.S. government officials and business leaders; informational sessions on U.S. government opportunities and services from various federal agencies; and site visits to companies and organizations.

Participating federal agencies include the Departments of State, Transportation, Energy, and Agriculture, U.S. Agency for International Development, Millennium Challenge Corporation, Export-Import Bank of the United States, U.S. Trade and Development Agency, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. Commercial Service – Cincinnati, and the Environmental Protection Agency.

We expect the conference to attract a number of African ministers of trade, infrastructure, and energy; relevant African business leaders and entrepreneurs; U.S. business leaders; and U.S. government officials. Learn more about the activities of the Bureau of African Affairs at the Department of State at: http://www.state.gov/p/af/index.htm. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter at: http://www.facebook.com/DOSAfricanAffairs and http://twitter.com/AFAsstSecy

###