Press Releases

Onsite Registration for the 29th Annual National Minority Enterprise Development Week Conference is Available - Join us at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C

Marriott Wardman Park Hotel Address
2660 Woodley Road NW
Washington, D.C. 20008
Phone: 1-202-328-2000
Fax: 1-202-234-0015

The Minority Business Development Agency, in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration, today announced the opening of registration for the 2011 Minority Enterprise Development Week (MED Week) Conference, which will be held Sept. 27-30 at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C.  The theme of this year’s conference is Emerging Industries and Markets: A Blueprint for Success, and the 3-day event will spotlight trends and opportunities for participating businesses.

“Minority-owned firms are a significant source of job creation in this country, and MED Week offers them an unparalleled opportunity to learn how to grow their business, network with other firms, and expose themselves to decision makers,” said MBDA National Director David A. Hinson. “MED Week is more important than ever before as minority-owned firms are seen as a valuable asset and significant source of economic growth for the country.”

Keynote speakers will include Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius and Secretary for Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan. 

New Minority Business Center to Foster Growth of Minority-Owned Firms through Assistance with Federal Procurement

WASHINGTON (May 31, 2011) – The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) announced today a competitive solicitation for candidates interested in operating a new MBDA Federal Procurement Center (MFPC). MBDA will award one cooperative agreement totaling $1.75 million over a five-year period – from fiscal year 2011 through fiscal year 2015 – to operate the Center, which will be located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

Agency seeks candidates to operate Minority Business Centers in Upper Midwest, Northeast and Southern California

WASHINGTON (March 30, 2011) - The U.S. Commerce Department’s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) today opened a grant competition to candidates interested in operating MBDA Business Centers in three U.S. regions: the Upper Midwest, the Northeast and Southern California. Selected candidates will receive funding to support business center operations and will join a national network of 27 other MBDA Business Centers.

The primary objective of MBDA Business Centers is to provide strategic business consulting services to minority firms that will result in increased public and private sector contracting opportunities and capital investments, ultimately leading to the creation of new U.S. jobs.

Council to support the continued growth of the minority business community

WASHINGTON (March 1, 2011) - The U.S. Commerce Department today announced the opening of the application process to fill four vacancies on the newly established National Advisory Council for Minority Business Enterprises. The Advisory Council, led by the department’s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), is the first council focused on promoting the minority business community since the early 1970s.

The National Advisory Council will hold its inaugural meeting to discuss administrative procedures, future work products and provide an orientation for new committee members on March 11 in Washington, D.C. Additional meetings will be held over the next year, including one to be held during the National Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week Conference scheduled for September.

The new Council will provide advice and recommendations to U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and the administration on a broad range of policy issues affecting the minority business community as part of the Obama Administration’s focus on job creation and U.S. economic growth. Recent Census data show that the number of minority-owned firms is growing at a significant rate, yet there is still a gap in revenue between minority-owned and non-minority-owned firms. Disparities in access to capital have also been recently documented in a report commissioned by MBDA.