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Press Release

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

OPIC Presents First Partnership Award to Corporate Council on Africa

  Acting OPIC President Dr. Lawrence Spinelli is flanked by Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) President Stephen Hayes, left, and CCA Chairman Dr. Jeffrey Sturchio after presenting CCA with the first OPIC Partnership Award.
Acting OPIC President Dr. Lawrence Spinelli is flanked by Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) President Stephen Hayes, left, and CCA Chairman Dr. Jeffrey Sturchio after presenting CCA with the first OPIC Partnership Award.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Dr. Lawrence Spinelli, Acting President of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), today presented the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) with the inaugural OPIC Partnership Award for its longstanding and mutual effort to facilitate U.S. private sector investment in Africa.

The OPIC Partnership Award recognizes organizations for cooperating with OPIC to encourage American investment in emerging markets, by disseminating information about OPIC products and services to their constituencies.

“OPIC is pleased to make the Corporate Council on Africa the inaugural recipient of its Partnership Award,” Spinelli said upon presenting the award to CCA President Stephen Hayes at the CCA annual meeting. “Creating opportunity and hope in Africa through private sector partnerships is CCA’s main objective and it is an important part of OPIC’s mission. That’s why our two organizations have worked so closely together for many years and that’s why OPIC wanted to express its gratitude for all that CCA has done to fulfill this goal.”

“What is most pleasing about bestowing this award upon CCA is that it is not the culmination of a relationship, but a reinforcement of it,” Spinelli concluded. “OPIC looks forward with great anticipation to continuing its partnership to help increase U.S. private sector investment in Africa for many years to come.”

CCA President Hayes said, “The Corporate Council on Africa is honored to receive the first OPIC Partnership Award. Business linkages generated by the partnership between CCA and OPIC have resulted in a significant number of investment opportunities for CCA members, which in turn have created economic growth throughout Africa. We look forward to continuing our close partnership with OPIC, to the benefit of entrepreneurs across Africa.”

The Corporate Council on Africa was established in 1993 to strengthen the commercial relationship between the United States and the African continent. CCA works closely with governments, multilateral groups and business to improve the African continent's trade and investment climate, and to raise the profile of Africa in the US business community.


OPIC is the U.S. Government’s development finance institution.  It mobilizes private capital to help solve critical development challenges and in doing so, advances U.S. foreign policy.  Because OPIC works with the U.S. private sector, it helps U.S. businesses gain footholds in emerging markets catalyzing revenues, jobs and growth opportunities both at home and abroad.  OPIC achieves its mission by providing investors with financing, guarantees, political risk insurance, and support for private equity investment funds.

 

Established as an agency of the U.S. Government in 1971, OPIC operates on a self-sustaining basis at no net cost to American taxpayers. OPIC services are available for new and expanding business enterprises in more than 150 countries worldwide. To date, OPIC has supported nearly $200 billion of investment in over 4,000 projects, generated $74 billion in U.S. exports and supported more than 275,000 American jobs.