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CSIS PRESENTS
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Time to Revisit U.S. Enterprise Funds?

Monday, December 11, 2017 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
CSIS Headquarters

In the early 1990s, President George H. W. Bush launched a series of country-focused “Enterprise Funds,” which are U.S. government dollars funding investment in developing countries. Enterprise Funds were given the unique and double mandate of making money and doing development---generating blended results. In some host countries, the range of goods and services were broadened; modern technologies were introduced; foreign investments were made in local markets; capital markets were developed; managerial groups received support and training; and the social responsibility of business and legacy activities were improved. For a variety of reasons, some funds were less successful than others and have somewhat of a mixed reputation in Washington D.C.

More recently, after the Arab Spring, Secretary Hillary Clinton initiated enterprise funds for Egypt and Tunisia. Though it is still early, both funds are doing well. The current landscape for Enterprise Funds is vastly different from what it was in the 1990s: private equity is better known today and most investors understand and appreciate opportunities in developing countries. The lessons over the past 25 years have produced valuable knowledge that needs to be harnessed into an updated discussion. Perhaps it is time to revisit Enterprise Funds as a tool for development and important foreign policy.

Featuring
James A. Harmon
Chairman Egyptian-American Enterprise Fund and Caravel Management LLC
W. Bowman Cutter
Chairman of the Tunisian American Enterprise Fund
Paige Alexander
Executive Director of European Cooperative for Rural Development and Former USAID Assistant Administrator
Kim G. Davis
Chair of the Baltic American Freedom Foundation and Managing Director and Co-Chairman Charlesbank Capital Partners, LLC 
CSIS Experts
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Daniel F. Runde
Senior Vice President; William A. Schreyer Chair and Director, Project on Prosperity and Development
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Contact Isabel Gonzalez
Tel: 202-775-3215
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Contact Emma Colbran
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Related
International Development, Private Sector Development, Project on Prosperity and Development

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