(Note: This text-only version does not contain illustrations or photographs)
Published September 2002 by the U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration.


[FRONT PANEL]

The Advocacy Center
Leveling the Playing Field for U.S. Businesses Competing Internationally

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration


[CENTER SPREAD]


THE ADVOCACY CENTER'S MISSION 

The Advocacy Center was established in 1993 to promote U.S. exports and help create and retain U.S. jobs by coordinating high-level U.S. government support to large, medium-sized, and small companies competing for international opportunities.  U.S. exports and U.S. jobs are generated when these companies source goods and services from the United States.  We use advocacy as a means to promote our country's economic well-being by leveling the playing field.

WHO WE ARE . . .

The Advocacy Center is not "just another government agency." Rather, we are a unique, central coordination office marshaling the resources of 19 U.S. government agencies in the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC) to ensure that sales of U.S. products and services have the best possible prospects abroad.  We are, in short, your advocate. 

Exporting today means more than just selling a good product at a competitive price; it can also mean dealing with foreign governments and complex regulations.  That's when we  step in! The Advocacy Center puts the resources and authority of the U.S. government behind your team to help you resolve problems such as:

• Foreign competitors receiving assistance from their home governments to pressure a customer into a buying decision;
• Unfair treatment by foreign government decision-makers, preventing you from a chance to compete;
• Politicized procurement processes linking contracts to concessionary financing, promises of technology transfer, or flow of aid;
• Tenders tied up in bureaucratic red tape, resulting in lost opportunities and unfair advantage to a competitor.

HOW WE CAN HELP YOU . . .

If your company is experiencing problems with a procurement by a foreign government agency or government-owned corporation, it is time to call the Advocacy Center.  We will work with you to determine who the players are and develop an appropriate strategy to help ensure that your company's proposal is given fair consideration.  Assistance can include:

• A timely letter to a foreign government decision-maker;
• A phone call to a high-level foreign official;
• A meeting between a foreign official and a U.S. ambassador, an embassy staffer, or other U.S. government official;
• A Cabinet or subcabinet-level trade mission to a foreign country.

Our efforts are coordinated with U.S. officials stationed at our embassies around the world and other U.S. government agencies to provide you with maximum assistance. 

For more information, call (202) 482-3896, send a fax to (202) 482-3508, or visit our Web site at www.trade.gov/advocacy.


[BACK PANEL 1]


CROSS-CUTTING PROGRAMS . . .

The Advocacy Center 
(202) 482-3896
Web site: www.trade.gov/advocacy
Helps U.S. firms win foreign public sector procurements.

The Trade Information Center
(800) USA-TRADE
Web site: www.trade.gov/td/tic
Provides information and assistance on exporting.

The Trade Compliance Center
(202) 482-1191
Web site: www.export.gov/tcc
Tracks foreign government compliance with international agreements and registers violations.

The National Trade Data Bank
(800) STAT-USA
Web site: www.stat-usa.gov
A fee-based database with trade-related documents collected by federal agencies.

[BACK PANEL 2]

"Open trade fuels the engines of economic growth that create new jobs and new income.  It applies the power of markets to the needs of the poor. It spurs the process of economic and legal reform. It helps dismantle protectionist bureaucracies that stifle incentive and invite corruption. And open trade reinforces the habits of liberty that sustain democracy over the long term."
-- President George W. Bush

"Trade now accounts for a quarter of all U.S. economic activity, and it supports more than 12 million American jobs. These are good jobs, paying as much as 18 percent more than the average. Trade has been a major engine for growth in the world economy for over half a century."
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Donald L. Evans


The International Trade Administration (ITA) has as its mission the creation of economic opportunity for U.S. workers and firms by promoting international trade, opening foreign markets, ensuring compliance with trade laws and agreements, and supporting U.S. commercial interests at home and abroad. To learn more about the ITA, write to: International Trade Administration, Office of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, DC 20230, or visit the ITA's Internet site at www.ita.doc.gov.

September 2002