USTR develops policy and coordinates efforts to improve the effectiveness of trade-related development assistance worldwide, and to increase funding to trade-related economic growth programs. By supporting effective, targeted, and demand-driven technical assistance, the United States ensures that all available resources are properly leveraged; programs are designed for the widest possible participation among developing and least developed countries, and, ultimately, the benefits of open and transparent trade regimes are realized by all our traders.
The United States promotes trade and economic growth in developing countries through a wide range of initiatives. The Aid for Trade is an example of trade capacity building program supported by the United States to foster the establishment of open markets and rules-based trading systems around the world, particularly in less developed countries.
Through Aid for Trade, the United States focuses on helping developing countries integrate into the global trading community. Support to countries, in the form of training and technical assistance, can help them make decisions about the benefits of trade arrangements and reforms, implement their international and regional obligations to bring certainty to their trade regimes, and enhance the ability of these countries to take advantage of the opportunities of the multilateral trading system to compete in the global economy.
U.S. government tariff preference programs administered by USTR are another example of the way the United States promotes economic growth by providing duty-free treatment to goods of designated beneficiary countries in the developing world.
We undertake these efforts because we believe in the benefits that can accrue to countries from fully implementing the global trade rules as they were negotiated by Members of the world trade regime.
You will find information HERE on the different U.S. government trade capacity building programs, including Aid for Trade, and U.S. government tariff preference programs such as: the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP); African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA); the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBERA); Pacific Islands and Nepal Preference Program.
