OF THE FEDERAL DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ETHIOPIA 8th Year No. 7 ADDIS ABABA — 20 December , 2001 CONTENTS Proclamation No. 261/2001 Export of Textile and Apparel Products , to the United States of America under the AGOA , Proclamation Page 1652 PROCLAMATION NO . 261/2001 A PROCLAMATION TO PROVIDE FOR THE EXPORT OF TEXTILE AND APPAREL PRODUCTS TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA UNDER THE AFRICAN GROWTH AND OPPORTUNITY ACT / AGOA WHEREAS , the Government of the United States of America has enacted the African Growth and Opportunity WHEREAS , this Act enables selected Sub - Sahara countries eligible to benefit from this Act ; WHEREAS , on the basis of the said Act , the Éthiopian become necessary to enact a law for manufacturers and exporters to operate in compliance with the agreement ; NOW , THEREFORE , in accordance with Article 55 ( 1 ) of the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia , it is hereby proclaimed as follows : 1. Short Title This Proclamation may be cited as the " Export of Textile and Apparel Products to the United States of America under the AGOA , Proclamation No. 261/2001 ” Unit Price icantawArchive.com * * www.African Negaru , G POBox 80,001 The African Law Archive * - No. 7 20 December , 2001 – Page 1653 2. Definition Unless the context requires otherwise , in this Proclamation : 1 / “ African Growth and Opportunity Act ( hereinafter the ' AGOA ) " means the African Growth and Opportunity Act enacted by the United States of America on 18 May , 2000 , 21 " Authorized Officer " means an officer to be desig nated by the Ethiopian Customs Authority to execute what is provided under Article 3 and Sub - Articles ( 1 ) and ( 2 ) of Article 11 of this Proclamation . 3 / " AGOA Textile and Apparel " means the following products specified under Groups 1-9 : Group 1. Apparel articles assembled in one or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African Countries from fabrics wholly formed and cut in the U.S. from yarns wholly formed in the U.S. Group 2. Apparel articles assembled in one or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African countries from fabrics wholly formed and cut in the U.S. from yarns wholly formed in the U.S. if , after such assem bly , the article would be qualified for entry under sub - heading 9802.00.80 of the HTSUS but for the fact that the articles were embroidered or subject to stone - washing , enzyme - washing , acid .washing , perma - pressing , oven baking , bleaching , garment - dyeing , screen printing , or other similar processes . Group 3. Apparel articles cut in one or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African coun tries from fabric wholly formed in the U.S. from yarns wholly formed in the U.S. if such articles are assembled in one or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African countries with thread formed in the U.S. Group 4. Apparel articles wholly assembled in one or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African countries from fabric wholly formed in one or more beneficiary Sub Saharan African countries from yarn originating either in the U.S. or in one or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African countries . Group 5. Apparel articles wholly assembled in one or more lesser developed be tries regardless of the country or origin of the fabric used to make such articles . * The African Law Archive * Group 6. Sweaters in chief weight of cashmere , knit - to - shape in one more be tries and classifiable under sub - heading 6610.10 of the HTSUS . Group 7. Sweaters , 50 percent or more by weight of wool measuring 18.5 microns in diameter or finer knit - to - shape in or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African countries . Group 8. Apparel articles wholly assembled in one or more beneficiary Sub - Saharan African countries from fabric or yarn that is not formed in the United States or a beneficiary Sub - Saharan African country , to the extent that the apparel articles of such fabrics or yarns would be eligible for preferential treatment , without having regard to the source of the fabric or yarn , under Annex 401 to the NAFTA , or as designated as not available in sufficient commercial quantities in the United States ; Group 9. Handmade , hand loomed , or folklore article to be defined in bilateral consul tations ; 4 / “ Authority ” means the Ethiopian Customs Authority ; 5 / " Beneficiary " means any manufacturer or exporter who made special registration in accordance with Sub Article ( 1 ) ( a ) of Article 7 of this Proclamation ; 61 " Certificate " means the textile and apparel cer tifieate of origin to be issued as specified under 71 , " Circumvention " means using different ways and means to by - pass or avoid obligations and requirements of this proclamation and AGOA to export textile and apparel products to the United States ; 8 / “ Commercial Invoice ” means an invoice to be issued by the seller to the purchaser ; 9 / “ Ministry ” means the Ministry of Trade and Indus 10 / " Person " means any physical or legal person ; 11 / “ Re - routing ” means allowing textile and apparel products , destined to the United States from Ethiopia for AGOA benefit , enter into the com merce of a third country's territory prior to its arrival in the United States ; 12 / “ Trans - shipment ” means the use of false infor mation concerning the country of origin , manufac ture , processing or assembly of textile and apparel articles or any component of such articles ; 131 “ Visa " means an official stamp duly affixed , by an authorized officer , on the original commercial invoice . * * The African Law Archive 3. Implementing Organ The Authority shall implement this Proclamation and it shall particularly : 1 ) issue a visa ; 2 ) certify certificate of origin , and 3 ) maintain information as required by AGOA and provide same when requested . 4. Right of Beneficiary Any person who has met the requirements under this Proclamation shall have the right to export textile and apparel products , duty and qouta free , to the United State of America as provided in AGOA . No person shall export textile and apparel products to the United States of America in accordance with AGOA unless he / she obtains a visa duly issued by the Authority . 6. Application for a Visa 1 ) Any application for a visa to export textile and apparel products to the United States under AGOA shall be submitted to the Authority together with the following documents : ( a ) the original commercial invoice together with 2 copies thereof ; ( b ) the certificate in triplicate . 2 ) The Authority , upon receipt of an application under Sub - Article ( 1 ) of this Article , shall : ( a ) request the applicant to furnish such other additional information as may be required ; ( b ) without prejudice to Article 8 of this Proclamation , issue a visa within five working days , provided that the application complies with the provisions of AGOA and this Proclamation . 3 ) Where the Authority rejects the application , it shall notify the applicant in writing of its decision and the reasons of rejection within five working days . 7. Registration and Declaration 1 ) .Any beneficiary shall : ( a ) make special registration in the Ministry ; ( b ) fill out and submit export declaration form to the Authority for each AGOA textile and apparel shipment ; and ( c ) apply for the cancellation of his special regis tration when closing or ceasing production .. 2 ) No person , other than the Authority , shall print or cause to be printed the certificate and the export declaration form to be used for export to the United States duty and quota - free . 8. Prohibition of a Visa The Authority shall not issue a visa , unless it is satisfied that : 1 ) the export of textile and apparel products to the United States under AGOA comply with the provisions of this Proclamation and that of AGOA . 2 ) records kept by the beneficiary comply with Article 9 of this Proclamation . 9. Keeping of Documents and Records 1 ) Aħy beneficiary shall keep the following complete documents and records in English and Amharic languages for at least 10 years : * * The African Law Archive No.7 20 December , 2001– Page 1656 ( a ) Production records ; ( b ) types , quantities and source ( place ) of raw materials and semi finished goods used for production ; ( c ) number and identification of the types of machinery used for production ; ( d ) number of workers employed in production ; ( e ) quantity of products exported under the provisions of AGOA ; ( f ) Other relevant information as may be required by the Authority . 2 ) Any document and information obtained in accor dance with this Proclamation shall be kept confiden tial and secret . 10. Prohibited Act Circumvention , re - routing and transshipment are stric tly prohibited acts for any beneficiary . 11. Investigation 1 ) An authorized officer or his designate , upon showing his identification card , shall , at any reasonable time , enter the premises of the be neficiary for the purpose of : ( a ) investigation on allegations of transshipment , ( b ) ensuring the implementation of AGOA and this Proclamation . 2 ) An authorized officer or his designate may conduct an investigation referred to under Sub - Article ( 1 ) of this Article together with representatives of the United States Customs Service . 3 ) Any beneficiary shall not refuse the applicability of Sub - Articles ( 1 ) and ( 2 ) of this Article . 12. Cancellation of License 1 ) The Ministry shall cancel the business license of the beneficiary where the holder thereof has failed to comply with the provisions of this Proclamation . 2 ) A beneficiary whose license is cancelled in accor dance with Sub - Article ( 1 ) of this Article shall not become beneficiary for five years from the day his license is cancelled . 3 ) The Ministry shall not grant or issue a business license to the beneficiary whose business license has been cancelled in accordance with Sub - Article ( 1 ) of this Article , or to any successor of such be neficiary or any other entity owned or operated by such beneficiary , for five years from the date such beneficiary's license is cancelled . 13. Penalty Any person who : 1 ) engages in circumvention , transshipment or re routing of products ; 2 ) submits , in connection with an application for a visa , a document or information that is false , incorrect , incomplete , or misleading in any material way or which is not a genuine document ; 3 ) knows , but does not report to the concerned Authority , facts related to a false visa or application for a visa ; 4 ) forges or in any way alters or tempers with any visa or causes any visa to be forged , altered , or tempered with ; 5 ) refuses access as provided under Article 11 ( 2 ) of this proclamation to facilities involved in the production or exportation of AGOA textiles and apparel ; 6 ) fails or neglects to maintain appropriate documents and records in accordance with Article 9 ( 1 ) of this Proclamation ; * * The African Law Archive 7 ) otherwise contravenes or fails to comply with this Proclamation , or any Regulations , Public Notices , or Directives issued by the Ministry or the Authority in Accordance with this Proclamation ; shall be liable to a fine of three times the value of the goods with respect to which the offence was committed . 14. Issuance of Regulations The Council of Ministers may issue Regulations to implement this Proclamation . 15. Issuance of Public Notice or Directives The Ministry or the Authority , as may be appropriate , may issue Public Notice or Directives necessary for the implementation of this Proclamation . 16. Effective Date This proclamation shall enter into force as of the 20th day of December , 2001 . Döne at Addis Ababa , this 20th day of December , 2001 . PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ETHIOPIA AfricanLawArchives The African Law Archive