The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is an agency in the

United States Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth and opportunity. Among its tasks are gathering economic and demographic data for bus ...

that promotes growth and competitiveness of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

' minority-owned businesses, including Hispanic and Latino American,

Asian Pacific American Asian/Pacific American (APA) or Asian/Pacific Islander (API) or Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) or Asian American and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) is a term sometimes used in the United States when including both Asian ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, and Native American businesses. The current Under Secretary is Don Cravins Jr. MBDA's stated mission is to promote the growth and competitiveness of minority-owned businesses by providing access to capital, access to contracts and access to market opportunities - both domestic and global. The main feature of the organization and its site is to provide business consulting services to minority business owners.

History

On March 5, 1969, President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

issued

Executive Order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of t ...

11458, establishing the Office of Minority Business Enterprise. On October 13, 1971, President Nixon issued Executive Order 11625, which clarified MBDA's authority and expanded the scope of its operations. In 1979, the agency was renamed the Minority Business Development Agency. The agency was cut in President Trump's FY18 executive budget, but subsequently restored in the President's FY19 budget - the only Federal agency to be restored after its proposed elimination. On November 15, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and originally in the House as the INVEST in America ActH.R. 3684, is a United States federal statute enacted by the 117th United States Congress ...

, which established the Minority Business Development Agency as a permanent agency. Prior to this, the agency was operating solely under

11458.

National Minority Enterprise Development Week

The Agency holds National Minority Enterprise Development Week in the month of October, observed in the

to recognize and celebrate the achievements and contributions of the

minority business enterprise Minority business enterprise (MBE) is an American designation for businesses which are at least 51% owned, operated and controlled on a daily basis by one or more (in combination) American citizens of the following ethnic minority and/or gender (e ...

community. President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

first recognized National MED Week in 1983. The week is formally celebrated each year by the Minority Business Development Agency, a U.S. government agency housed within the U.S.

Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth and opportunity. Among its tasks are gathering economic and demographic data for busi ...

. On October 20, 2017, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

issued a proclamation which officially designated October 22 through October 28, 2017 as National Minority Enterprise Development Week. On October 24, 2017, President Trump recognized minority-owned businesses in the

Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the President of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is located in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval-shaped roo ...

during National MED Week, when he welcomed winners of the National MED Week Awards with Secretary of Commerce

Wilbur Ross Wilbur Louis Ross Jr. (born November 28, 1937) is an American businessman who served as the 39th United States Secretary of Commerce from 2017 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Ross was previously chairman and chief executive officer ...

and MBDA Acting National Director Christopher A. Garcia.

References

Resources

Alkalimat, Abdul. The African American Experience in Cyberspace. Pluto Press, 1994.

External links

*
Minority Business Development Agency
in the

Federal Register The ''Federal Register'' (FR or sometimes Fed. Reg.) is the official journal of the federal government of the United States that contains government agency rules, proposed rules, and public notices. It is published every weekday, except on fede ...

{{authority control Government agencies established in 1969 Establishments by United States executive order Investment promotion agencies United States Department of Commerce agencies Presidency of Richard Nixon

History

National Minority Enterprise Development Week

See also

References

Resources

External links