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Created on March 6, 2014 |
HON. CEDRIC L. RICHMOND
OF LOUISIANA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Mr. RICHMOND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to applaud the Minority Business Development Agency on this its 45th Anniversary. Established in 1969, the MBDA has worked tirelessly and diligently to promote the growth and global competitiveness of a critical segment of the U.S. Economy, the minority business community.
Why is this important? Well Mr. Speaker it is important because investing in contracts, capital and counseling for our minority owned businesses will yield significant results for minority communities. If we help our minority businesses help themselves, their success will bring sustainable economic growth and trans-generational wealth creation that will transform many of our hardest hit areas.
At the time of the Agency's creation there were only 322,000 minority -owned firms in the nation. Today, that number stands at 5.8 million firms contributing $1 trillion towards our nation's economy. MBDA has been a significant part of this impressive growth story. Over the last five years in particular, MBDA has helped firms gain access to over $19 billion in contracts and capital resulting in the creation and retention of nearly 60,000 jobs. These are great numbers, Mr. Speaker and we have to thank the MBDA and its team for their efforts. But we have more work to do.
I thank MBDA for all it has accomplished over the last 45 years. In the coming years, the growth of America's workforce will come from partnerships between the public and private sector. MBDA serves as a bridge connecting government and private resources to leverage existing competencies in service to the growth of the minority business sector. I applaud MBDA's mission and will continue to support it in the decades ahead.
Posted at 7:00 PM
