Invest in america
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Invest in America is an initiative of the U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration to promote inward direct investment to the United States, the only such U.S. effort at the federal level.
On March 7, 2007, U.S. Commerce Under Secretary for International Trade Franklin Lavin announced the creation of this new U.S. Government initiative, housed in the International Trade Administration, which will promote the United States as a destination for inward direct investment, also known as foreign direct investment. This initiative will be the primary U.S. Government mechanism to manage inward investment promotion.
In introducing the initiative, Under Secretary Lavin said, "The United States welcomes foreign investment and the jobs and prosperity it creates here. We are seeing increasing global competition for investment flows and we need to make sure that international investors understand the unique advantages of the United States, including the best workforce in the world."
The Invest in America initiative promotes the desirability of investment in the U.S. as a whole by highlighting the advantages of investing in the U.S., and countering the misconceptions some investors may have. Investment from foreign subsidiaries employs more than 5 million American workers. U.S. subsidiaries also spent $29.9 billion on research and development activities in the United States in 2005.
The initiative, still in a start-up period, will focus on outreach to the international investment community; coordination with state and local governments engaged in foreign investment promotion; and work as ombudsman in the Washington, DC policy community to address business climate concerns.
The Invest in America Initiative will complement the work of state and local governments. The one activity the initiative will not undertake is to steer prospective investors toward or away any particular locale in the United States. That part of the investment decision must continue to be led by the localities, and the U.S. Federal Government will remain strictly neutral in any competition among sites within the U.S. The initiative will promote the U.S. in general as a site for investment.
Aaron Brickman is Director of the Invest in America initiative.
