Georgia Selected For Federal TradeRoots Program

Program Raises Awareness of International Trade on a Local Level

ATLANTA - Governor Sonny Perdue announced today that Georgia has been selected to participate in TradeRoots, the nation’s leading grassroots trade education initiative dedicated to raising public and business awareness of international trade at the community level.

“As a global business center, Georgia places great importance on building strong trade ties throughout the world,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “By bringing trade education to our communities, we will increase international commerce opportunities for Georgia businesses looking to grow and create jobs.”

The program, sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, includes customized workshops in seven communities – Columbus, Douglas, Gainesville, Rome, Savannah, Thomasville and Tifton – to educate companies and economic developers on the benefits of free trade agreements, the differences and similarities among these agreements and how trade serves as an economic development tool.

“Any successful business in Georgia will tell you that the marketplace is becoming increasingly global,” said Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Craig Lesser. “This program will give our local communities the knowledge and tools they need to be competitive at a higher level.”

As part of the TradeRoots program, Georgia will also focus on strengthening its trade ties with Chile. Since Atlanta submitted its bid to serve as headquarters of the Secretariat of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), the state has increased its overall trade efforts through Canada and Latin America.

The TradeRoots program is 18 months long and involves partners at the federal, state and local level. Georgia’s organizing committee for the program includes the state Board of Regents, Georgia Department of Agriculture, Georgia Department of Economic Development, Georgia Department of Technical and Adult Education, Georgia Economic Developers Association, the North Georgia District Export Council, the University of Georgia’s Business Outreach Services/SBDC, U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. Export Assistance Center.