Washington, DC [US], August 16 : The head of the US Small Business Administration (SBA), Isabel Casillas Guzman, announced on Thursday a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the SBA and India's Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to strengthen the two countries' joint work to promote MSME participation in the global marketplace.
Guzman, notably is the voice in President Joe Biden's Cabinet for America's more than 34 million small businesses.
The agreement, signed by Administrator Guzman and the Indian Ministry for MSMEs in New Delhi on August 13, is the SBA's first such collaboration with India.
"The United States-India partnership is grounded in shared values of democracy, freedom, and opportunity, and through our new MOU with the Indian Ministry of MSMEs, the SBA is delivering on President Biden and Prime Minister Modi's outlined commitment to expanding our collaboration on empowering more small businesses and innovative startups in the global marketplace," said Administrator Guzman, an official press release read.
"From advancing technology to supporting inclusive growth for women and other underserved entrepreneurs, we look forward to working alongside our counterparts to ensure entrepreneurial ecosystems are at the center of both countries' efforts to strengthen investment, commercialization, supply chains, and trade in industries of the future."
The MoU builds on discussions during the state visit President Biden hosted for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2023, during which they shared views on the importance of MSMEs and entrepreneurship in building strong and inclusive economies for both nations.
The agreement places a particular focus on integrating small businesses into the green energy transition and promoting women's entrepreneurship.
Under the initial five-year term of the MoU, the United States and India will move forward together to conduct joint programming to share expertise and best practices on entrepreneurial training, access to capital, trade and export financing, and leveraging technology and digital services, among other topics to improve small businesses' participation in the global marketplace.
The two parties also agreed to explore developing a "Business Matching Digital Platform" to boost business opportunities and strategic partnerships between US and Indian firms.
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