US Palestinian Partnership and US Chamber of Commerce Host Palestinian Investment Forum
WASHINGTON,, Oct 14, 2008 -- US Secretary of State Rice and Palestinian Prime Minister Fayyad call business investment key to peace and security
Jean Case joins leaders from Intel, Cisco, TouchStar and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America to Announce Multi-Million Dollar Investments
At today's Palestinian Business and Investment Forum, co-hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce and the US Palestinian Partnership -- a US Government initiative launched in 2007 with the Aspen Institute to leverage public-private partnerships to create economic opportunity for the Palestinian people -- US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Palestinian Prime Minister H.E. Salam Fayyad, each called for stepped-up business investment and new partnerships as priorities in achieving peace and prosperity in the Middle East.
Following Prime Mister Fayyad's remarks, in which he called business-to-business relationships a crucial factor in building a stable and successful Palestinian State, Jean Case, who, along with Walter Isaacson, President and CEO of the Aspen Institute, serves as one of the co-chairs of the Partnership, praised Dr. Fayyad for his insight, inspiration and for "...his true call to action: that Palestine is open for business. She also noted that those in attendance, "...shared a belief that the most significant and lasting solutions occur when governments, private sector, and civil society work together." Case added, "it is the unique and important role of the private sector to provide the seeds of economic growth and innovation, a role that these companies have embraced and that will serve as an example to others looking to invest."
Ms. Case, who leads the Partnership's Youth Development and Resource Centers efforts and has focused much of her work on helping create quick-impact economic initiatives that promote job creation and training, was joined by James Kunder, Acting Deputy Administrator, US Agency for International Development, and representatives from Intel, Cisco and TouchStar (a leader in call center development) as each of the companies announced millions of dollars in private investment in the West Bank and Gaza.
The investments are in programs focused on education, technical training, worker's skill building, encouraging and training new entrepreneurs, and the launch of a call center that will employee more than 500 people. In total, and over time, the investments spoken of today will amount to well in excess of $100 million and will impact the lives of thousands of people as well as the prospects of the entire region.
The Plenary Session at which today's announcements occurred, was the kick-off to a day of meetings and sessions at the US Chamber of Commerce's headquarters in Washington that included panels and discussions on information and communications technology, tourism in Palestine, and the pharmaceutical sector. Among the day's announcements was a Pro Bono commitment by the Boy and Girls Clubs of America to provide training and support to Youth Centers in the West Bank and to form sister-city relationships between Boys and Girls Clubs in Palestine and in the US.
For more information visit http://www.casefoundation.org or http://www.uspalestinianpartnership.org
SOURCE The Case Foundation
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