Clinton At Global Impact Economy Forum

A rising tide lifts all boats, and that is why the United States spends a tremendous amount of effort and money around the world, to create conditions for the less affluent to prosper. “We believe expanding economic opportunity is fundamental to achieving our own national interest,” said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in late April at the Global Impact Economy Forum. Her audience included some 350 high-level investors, business executives, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, academics and policymakers.

"If we can open the doors to new markets and new investments, we can tap as many as 1.4 billion new mid-market customers with growing incomes in developing countries. . . . So when we make investments from the three stools of this strategy, official development assistance, not-for-profit philanthropic assistance, private sector investments, we are not only helping to grow and strengthen middle classes in developing nations, we are also supporting the businesses that create jobs here at home. We know that working with the private sector can bolster both our foreign policy interests and our development efforts.”

Our goal, said Secretary Clinton, is to create an inclusive economic ecosystem that will promote innovative business approaches and sustainable investments, mitigate the risks of doing business in emerging economies, and increase economic engagement overseas that improves the lives of those in developing nations while supporting the expansion of American business overseas.

The United States is therefore introducing two new programs: the first, a partnership between the United States Agency for International Development and the Skoll Foundation, dedicates over 40 million dollars in an effort to spur cost-effective and sustainable innovations.


The second, called Accelerating Market-Driven Partnerships or AMP, will be launched in Brazil. It unites multilateral partners in Brazil and the United States in an effort to build sustainable cities, which includes providing low-cost housing, offering skills training for local workers, and improving urban waste management systems.

“We want more prosperous societies. We want to see people moving into the middle class. We want to see that creativity and entrepreneurial spirit fostering growth,” said Secretary Clinton. “And we have been working within the Obama Administration to bring our various institutions together to try to put forth that as a focus for us.”