Mr Kamara was recently appointed by the Foundation for Democracy in Africa (FDA) to serve on the Advisory Board for the US-Africa Trade and Economic Forum, Civil Society Organization (CSO) Session Planning Committee. The 2016-2017 Advisory consists of a select group of leaders who have extensive expertise in and demonstrated commitment to advancing US-Africa trade, investment, and cooperation.
The Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Civil Society Network Secretariat was established by 102 member organizations from the United States, Mauritius, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Namibia, Mali, Lesotho and the Democratic Republic of Congo on January 17, 2003 at the conclusion of the AGOA Civil Society Forum in Phoenix, Mauritius. The Foundation for Democracy in Africa (FDA) and the Mauritius Council of Social Services were elected as co-chairs and empowered to establish and manage the Secretariat for the AGOA Civil Society Network. The Secretariat was authorized to make all the necessary preparations for subsequent AGOA Civil Society Sessions of the Forum.
The 2016-2017 Advisory Board members will be responsible for guiding the Secretariat throughout the planning and successful execution of the CSO Sessions of the 2016-2017 US Africa Trade and Economic Forums, and ensuring that the preparations for the CSO Sessions and CSOs’ participation in both Forums are optimized.
Sierra Leone is the first AGOA eligible country to officially become a member of the Africa Trade Development Center in 2013, which guarantee a seat on the AGOA advisory Board.
Mr. Henry Yamba Kamara has an extensive experience in International Trade and export development. He was the Director of Export Development of the Sierra Leone Investment and Export Promotion Agency (SLIEPA). During his tenure with the Agency, Mr. Kamara has provided exporters with market linkages and has championed government’s initiatives in the development of trade policies and strategies such as the National Export Strategy (NES), the development of the “Trade Secrets”, the export guide for Sierra Leone and was the Country Focal Point of the International Trade Centre Programme for Building African Capacity for Trade, PACT II in West Africa.
Mr. Kamara is a Lead Assessor in ISO9001 Management Systems and can assist organization to achieve independent external ISO9001 Quality Management Systems certification. He has recently attained a professional training as Lead Assessor in Roundtable Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and has a good general knowledge in Supply Product Certification, Supply Chain Management, Standardization, Accreditation, Fair Trade, UTZ, Global Gap and Rainforest Alliance Certification Systems.
