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MBDA National Director Hinson Supports Global Initiatives in Brazil

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I am sitting with Luciana Mello, an Afro-Brazilian entrepreneur whose consulting company, Prama Consulting, assists small and medium-sized businesses export from Brazil. One of her main lines of business is language translation services. As businesses continue to move to a global economy, there is a growing need for translation services.

Most of Mello’s clients are Afro-Brazilian companies that export primarily within Latin America. When asked about exporting to the U.S., Luciana said “Most of my clients don't consider exporting to the United States because they feel that the market is too difficult to enter and too large, but if they could find a U.S. partner, they would be interested.”

MBDA works hard to help minority-owned firms grow. For the 3-year period of the Obama Administration and during the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, we assisted minority-owned businesses in obtaining nearly $11 billion in contracts and capital, creating 16,300 new jobs, and saving tens of thousands of existing jobs. This represents an outstanding 101% increase in contracts and capital over the prior 3-year period. Moreover, we registered a 20% increase in new jobs created over the prior 3-year period and a 36% increase in the number of companies assisted by the Agency.

Our MBDA staff and national network of business centers participate in events similar to this trip to build partnerships to grow American businesses and create jobs. Here at MBDA we engage our U.S. government partners in an effort to create export opportunities for America’s minority-owned firms in Brazil. In 2011, the United States and Brazil signed a memorandum of understanding on major global sporting events to establish a partnership in advance of the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games. The United States has worked tirelessly to deepen its ties with Brazil, and Brazil’s ties with the global economic community.

There are many global business opportunities for U.S. minority entrepreneurs. Partner with the Department of Commerce and MBDA to learn more about these opportunities. To keep up on further developments, visit our website, www.mbda.gov and follow our twitter account @usmbda.

Global Opportunities and New Markets

Global Opportunities and New Markets

From the Director

From the Director