Support Cong. Clark NY Haiti Private Sector Bill
Requested Amendments to Haitian Private Sector Encouragement Act of 2010:
The "Haitian-American Enterprise Fund', should be a financial vehicle directed specifically towards the Haitian-American Diaspora and U.S/Haiti Business partnerships for the primary purpose of stimulating investments in Haiti.
U.S Diaspora and U.S/Haiti Business enterprises should be prioritized as the main beneficiaries of this financial stimulus due to the US, to include US Diaspora participation in financially furbishing the proposed fund as U.S citizens with tax obligations
Consideration should be given to a funds management partnership to include the Bush/Clinton Fund, USAID in conjunction and/or partnership with organizations like OPIC, as well as reputable and experienced local financial institutions.
There is also the potential to increase the fund itself, - and/or use the original fund amount as seed money; - Which can then be increased to 3x the original amount.
Program description: The Capitalization of Private Sector to include program designed to meet a business's key financing needs, -such as:
- debt financing (loans)
- equity financing (investment/seed money)
- surety bonds
- insurance Coverage
- provision of low-cost interest loans and affordable insurances, - - to include mortgages, insurances, etc...
for
rebuilding/construction
NGOs with definite 5 year plans to contribute towards economic self-sufficiency should be included; Further, the following should be considered:
-1. exact definition of an SME, - which may not mean the same in the US as it does in Haiti.
-2. Large scale businesses should be explicitly included in the bill, - as they represent the fastest means of job creation through capacity expansion, - with existing businesses afforded the experience necessary to grow expeditiously.
For example: the garment sector, where an individual company commonly can employ 300 to 1000 or more people,- should be able to be capitalized to potentially employ 10,000 people or more.
The same example can be said with agri-businesses, tourism, energy/renewable energy, construction, etc....
Since large companies can contribute significantly to the real development of Haiti.
Therefore, the bill should include a definite set-aside for the capitalization of large-scale businesses, - with the balance capitalizing Small and Medium Businesses (SMEs)
-3. The Section 2 portion of the bill should have more specific inclusionary language:
Specify the definite inclusion of the Haitian-American Diaspora and Haitian/US Business partnerships to:
(a) encourage US investments,
(b) capacity expansion,
(c) Assist and support local enterprises, to include US Investments with necessary financial, technical expertise and experience in entrepreneurial activities, enterprise building and development to Haiti.
(d) value-added programs
Focus Industries:
• Agriculture
• Energy/renewable energy
• Public private partnerships (PPP)
• Apparel/garment industry
• Tourism industry
• Rebuilding/reconstruction Efforts
The Haiti Private Sector Recovery Act 2010 should also include the following:
1. Fast-tract Project Financing of US investments in Haitian and of viable local companies
2. Facilitation of U.S. and Haitian business [investment] establishment in Haiti
3. Provision of adequate and affordable credit towards capacity expansion for local companies
4. To streamline loan application to funds disbursement process from the current average of 8 months to 30 - 60 days in partnership with local Haitian Banks.
5. To work with on-the-Ground US and Haiti firms towards Reconstruction/Rebuilding Haiti in partnership with the Government of Haiti (GOH).
6. To assist the GOH to address, streamline and fix the bureaucratic challenges detrimental and discouraging to foreign investments in Haiti
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EM: regine.
barjon at bioteksolutions.com; JWolff5604 at aol.com; rbarjon at haccof.com; fguillaume at haccof.com
