AAFA Asks Congress to Immediately Renew HOPE/HELP
The American Apparel and Footwear Association, in addition to expressing hope that the U.S. government will support measures to end the gang violence convulsing Haiti, asked the leaders of the House and Senate to renew trade preferences programs scheduled to expire at the end of September 2025.
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"There is no question that Haiti is at a critical juncture. The extension of the state of emergency, the recent resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, and the closures of the airport and main port due to a surge in gang violence has made Haiti an increasingly difficult place to do business," AAFA CEO Steve Lamar wrote. "Companies are now having to guess whether they should place orders now for importation that will occur after the scheduled expiration of HOPE/HELP, an impossible dynamic that is eroding future business today."
He said that renewing HOPE/HELP immediately will help to ease the "uncertainty that is today threatening economic livelihood in Haiti (and the Dominican Republic)." The programs were established in the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) and the Haiti Economic Lift Program (HELP) Acts.