BuyUSA.com, an electronic marketplace sponsored by the US Department of Commerce and implemented by IBM, was launched on the African continent yesterday by US commercial service director-general Maria Cino.
The marketplace enables importers from South African and other African countries, to locate and contact American suppliers online, register and be vetted for trade with the US, conduct financial transactions with American companies and access legal information.
IBM supplies the e-business infrastructure for the venture, both locally and internationally, including marketplaces in the Philippines and Honk Kong.
BuyUSA.com has made SA its first port of call on the continent, and will expand from here.
Speaking at the launch, Cino said BuyUSA.com is just one example of the US focus on increasing trade and investment, and helping to create jobs and prosperity for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) - American and African alike.
"The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) is another vehicle for enhancing trade between African countries and the US - by removing barriers to imports from Africa for countries that meet the criteria of supporting free market and democratic principles.
"Both BuyUSA.com and AGOA focus on fostering the growth of SMEs, with BuyUSA.com putting an electronic framework in place for exports from the US, and AGOA supplying a political and legal framework for imports."
The US Department of Commerce will also encourage local exporters to set up a similar venture for local exporters.
There are currently 422 South African subscribers to BuyUSA.com, which is a free service. The only requirement is for a local distributor or reseller to contact a local office of BuyUSA and undergo a regulatory vetting process, before they are subscribed to the service.
There are 16 000 US companies making use of the service and the US Department of Commerce stresses its aim is not to sign up all US companies to the service, but rather to supply US companies with an additional tool or channel through which companies can increase exports.
Mark Harris, IBM SA country GM, says private/public sector partnerships of this sort are becoming an increasingly crucial concept because they are a source of strength for both parties.
"BuyUSA.com is a superb example of the many-layered capacity of partnership to create wealth. For instance, BuyUSA.com is a public/private partnership between the US Department of Commerce and IT supplier IBM, and it also enables partnerships between American and international businesses.
"It`s an example that African governments could usefully follow in their efforts to promote economic growth in their countries. And setting up a 'BuyAfrica.com` e-marketplace could provide an enormous boost for the whole continent," says Harris.
The US Department of Commerce emphasised it is not its place to assess which African countries would be on the list of future BuyUSA partners, and any political and economic assessment of countries would be left to members of the US government who determine the county`s foreign policy.
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