The Minority Business Development Agency hosts 2023 National AANHPI Business Summit at U.S. Department of Commerce
MBDA Media Contact Information: Mr. Gabriel Cushing, Public Affairs (gcushing@mbda.gov)
WASHINGTON, D.C., May 8, 2023 — The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is celebrating Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month by hosting the National AANHPI Business Summit on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, from 9:00am to 1:00pm ET in Washington D.C. During this business summit, MBDA and the National Asian/Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (National ACE) will sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) focused on expanding opportunities to Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander minority businesses.
This business summit will commemorate the contributions and achievements of the AANHPI business community and its entrepreneurs. The summit will also feature elected officials, dignitaries, and corporate partners, to discuss access to capital, access to technology, and opportunities within the CHIPS & Science Act. In addition, the US Department of Commerce will be honoring Former Secretary Norman Y. Mineta with a special announcement.
“Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian-owned businesses are essential to the fabric of our communities and our Nation’s economy,” said Donald R. Cravins, Jr., Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development. “This Business Summit gives our AANHPI businesses the opportunity to meet with MBDA, our Administration partners, and private sector allies to discuss what matters most: their businesses and communities. The Department of Commerce is making historic investments in our Nation’s small, mid-size, and minority businesses through initiatives like the CHIPS for America Program and the Capital Readiness Program. MBDA will make sure our AANHPI-owned businesses have what they need to secure these once-in-a-generation opportunities.”
Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development Donald R. Cravins Jr. and the newly appointed Deputy Under Secretary Jessica G. Cavazos will host the event. Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-27), Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo, Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Graves, Deputy Assistant to the President and Asian American Pacific Islander Liaison Erika Moritsugu, State Department Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs Dilawar Syed, Chiling Tong, President & CEO of National ACE, and Ying McGuire, President and CEO of the National Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. (NMSDC) will also attend.
To register and attend the 2023 National AANHPI Business Summit, please visit www.mbda.gov. The deadline for registration is May 10, 2023 at 11:59 P.M EST.
About the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)
The U.S. Department of Commerce, Minority Business Development Agency is the only Federal agency solely dedicated to the growth and global competitiveness of U.S. minority business enterprises (MBEs). For more than 50 years, MBDA’s programs and services have better equipped MBEs to create jobs, build scale and capacity, increase revenues, and expand regionally, nationally, and internationally.
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