Commerce awards $1.9 million to boost exports

Commerce awards $1.9 million to boost exports   The U.S. Commerce Department has released $1.9 million in financial assistance to support projects that it said will increase U.S. exports, create jobs and strengthen American global competitiveness.
  The funds will be awarded to five non-profit industry organizations and are expected to generate $1.96 billion in U.S. exports in the next three years, ranging from attracting foreign students and tourists to promoting clean truck technology and medical technology exports.
  The department’s Market Development Cooperator Program (MDCP) awards include financial and technical assistance from the International Trade Administration (ITA) to support well-defined business plans aimed at increasing exports and U.S. competitiveness within certain industries. An MDCP award establishes a partnership between ITA and nonprofit industry groups to help strengthen global competitiveness and create jobs through exports.
  The five recipients of the 2011 MDCP awards are:
  • California ETEC, Irvine, Calif., $388,425.
  • CALSTART, Pasadena, Calif., $300,271.
  • NEMA, Medical Imaging and Technology Alliance, Rosslyn, Va., $207,140.
  • Specialty Equipment Market Association, Diamond Bar, Calif., $500,000.
  • U.S. Travel Association, Washington, $491,681.
  This year’s MDCP awards will be matched by a $4.4 million investment by the non-profit industry recipients, who pledged to pay a minimum of two-thirds of the project costs and to sustain the projects after the initial MDCP award period ends, the Commerce Department explained.
  Since MDCP’s inception in 1993, the program has issued 112 awards. In an average year, MDCP projects generate $229 million in U.S. exports. For more information about the program, access the Web site.