Dr. Daniel Bromley is the Anderson-Bascom Distinguished Professor of Applied Economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and at Humbold University in Berlin. He is the author, most recently, of "Vulnerable People, Vulnerable States: Redefining the Development Challenge." The views expressed here are his own.

Global Shea Alliance participates at in-cosmetics, trains women in Ghana

The Global Shea Alliance, co-founded by the USAID Trade Hub in 2011, participated at the In-Cosmetics international trade show and the Union for Ethical Bio Trade conference in Paris, distributing more than 100 annual reports and membership directories to shea butter distributers, brands, and development agencies from around the world.

Border Information Center opens at the Port of Dakar

105 stakeholders in Senegal participated in the launch of West Africa’s fourth Border Information Center in Dakar. The new center is hosted by the Conseil Sénégalais des Chargeurs (COSEC).

AGOA opened the U.S. to  duty-free sale of more than 6,000 items (tariff lines) from African nations provided those countries conduct free and fair elections. Products from West Africa that have utilized the program include textiles, apparel, agricultural products such as cashews and shea butter as well as oil and gas.

Bankers learn about USAID Trade Hub access to finance initiatives

80 finance experts discussed constraints that limit small and medium enterprises’ access to finance and learned about the USAID Trade Hub’s innovative work to improve access during a meeting organized by Ecobank Togo in Lome. The USAID Trade Hub’s work with the African Cashew Alliance, the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development and the West African Development Bank were the focus of a presentation by the USAID Trade Hub.

AfricaNow! Handcrafts Exporters Workshop held at SIAO 2012

87 handcrafts producers and exporters from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Togo participated in the USAID Trade Hub-supported AfricaNow! three-day handcrafts exporters workshop at the Salon International de l’Artisanat de Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso. The workshop was supported by the USAID BEAM project as well.

Gift giving is an art – but it begins with knowing what’s available. Every year, Tradewinds asks Leslie Shages, who works with hundreds of West African exporters and buyers in world markets, to review the possibilities in light of the products available from West Africa. Her guide this year is truly a work of art!

Design Network Africa facilitates designer dialogue, collaboration