More than 14 years ago, the Congress passed the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which is known as AGOA. For the first time, the United States established a trade policy that was specific to sub-Saharan Africa. AGOA was designed by a bipartisan group of lawmakers with the goal of fostering opportunities for African entrepreneurship and strengthening its job-creating trade ties with our country. Today the law allows almost all products from eligible African countries to be imported duty-free. In 2000, trade between the United States and Africa stood at less than $30 billion. It more than tripled over the following decade as exports diversified and grew, supporting job growth in both our country and in Africa. There are more than 100,000 red, white, and blue American jobs tied to AGOA. American exports to sub-Saharan Africa grew about 250 percent since the program's inception, particularly benefiting aerospace, auto, and agricultural jobs here at home.