Council of Great Lakes Governors Trade Office in South Africa
The Council of Great Lakes Governors is a special partnership between the Governors of all the Great Lake States and includes the Ohio International Trade offices. The Southern African Council of Great Lakes Governors Trade Office was established in 1999 within Johannesburg. This international trade office in South Africa does much in assisting companies to find new markets in the countries of southern Africa as well as the Indian Ocean islands.
Southern Africa boasts one of the quickest developing export markets for the states of the US Great Lakes. With the change to democracy in South Africa in 1994 the country has taken the lead when it comes to economic development and transition policy. South Africa is an ideal market for global commercial and consumer goods due to the transparent business culture, free press, limited bureaucracy, easy movement of people, economic and political freedoms and the use of English as the language of business. The southern African Trade Office of the Council of Great Lakes Governors has seen major growth and offers many services to companies in Ohio, New York and Pennsylvania. A major role the trade office plays is to assist firms in locating business partners in the southern African countries as well as providing market research.
The shared Trade Office initiative created by the Council of Great Lakes Governors has created a partnership between the 6 Great Lakes States. This partnership ensures the advancement of international trade initiative as well as offering several benefits to its members. Amongst these benefits is the sharing of overhead costs, sharing of salaries and the sharing of information and resources. The Ohio International Trade Office of South Africa forms part of this initiative. The International Trade Division of Ohio's trade office promotes the export of products and services of Ohio so as to improve the economy and to further Ohio's leadership position on the international market. The shared Ohio Trade Office in South Africa offers companies market research, has information on distributors and agents, takes part in trade shows, assists with export finance and arranges trade missions. In the year 2005 Ohio's exports to South Africa came to a total of $481 million. The main exports to South Africa from Ohio are mining products, medical products, auto parts and rail products. The Council of Great Lakes Governors Trade Office in partnership with the Ohio Trade Office in South Africa plays a vital role in the economic relationship between the Great Lakes States and South Africa.