MBDA National Director Hinson and U.S. Government Delegation Trip to Brazil Builds International Relationships

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MBDA National Director Hinson and Shawn Ricks, Senior Advisor to the National Director on Global Affairs began a five-day trip to Brasilia and Sao Paulo, Brazil. This trip will provide an opportunity for MBDA to build relationships with key stakeholder groups essential to reaching its export targets under the National Export Initiative, create greater access to emerging markets for minority business enterprises, and support job creation in the United States.

On Monday, Director Hinson and Senior Advisor Ricks met with International Trade Administration Senior Commercial Officer Brian Brisson and his team to discuss business opportunities for minority-owned businesses in Brazil. As Latin America’s biggest economy, Brazil has strong domestic demands and a growing middle class. Its diversified economy offers U.S. companies, especially minority-owned – who are nearly twice as likely to export as non-minority owned business, many opportunities to export their goods and services.

In a separate meeting, Brazil's Ministry of Cities’ Executive Secretary Alexandre Cordeiro, met with Director Hinson, Senior Advisor Ricks, and Reta Jo Lewis, Special Representative with the U.S. Department of State to provide an overview of several infrastructure projects taking place across the country, as part of a multi-year urban sustainability project. These projects will include partnerships with several Federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Environmental Protection Agency. MBDA, the only federal agency tasked with the growth and global competitiveness of minority-owned firms in the United States will explore how these partnerships can lead to contracting opportunities for U.S. minority-owned business.

National Director Hinson also met with Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Relations. He provided an overview of how MBDA helps minority-owned businesses improve their return-on-investment through strategic partnerships. Learn more about how Strategic Partnerships can Make a lot of Sense for your business.

Today he will meet with Brazilian business owners and the Federal Minister of Sports to discuss the World Cup 2014 and the Olympic Games 2016 building progress and sporting contracting opportunities for minority-owned businesses. We look forward to continuing to provide you with highlights and useful information from Brazil.