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Remarks at the Roundtable Discussion on "Diversity in Business"

U.S. Ambassador William C. Eacho, III

Amerika Haus
Vienna, January 28, 2010

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Amerika Haus. I’m glad you could join this discussion on diversity in business.

The invitation to this round table stems from a recent initiative by President Obama. The President plans to establish a platform for developing partnerships and attracting commitments between minority communities and the business world.

In late April, the President will host an international entrepreneurship summit in Washington, bringing together minority representatives and business leaders from around the world. The summit will focus on Muslim communities. I want to extend our discussion today to include a wider range of minorities and immigrants in Austria. One of my country’s greatest assets is its diversity.

Within our shores are people who look and speak like every other nation on earth. That is a strength that allows us to be among the most competitive nations in the growing global marketplace. The number of businesses in our minority communities continues to grow, adding to our competitive advantage. Minority business enterprises accounted for more than 50 percent of the two million new businesses started over the last ten years. These businesses cross the entire industrial base from financial services and health care to construction and transportation.

In the US, we are well aware that the success of entrepreneurship in minority communities is critical to a country’s economy – and that, while our nation is changing, we must preserve our commitment to equal opportunity. This brings me back to President Obama’s initiative.

No country can afford to leave any segment of its society behind. Clearly the potential for minority entrepreneurship and immigrant job opportunities has not been fully tapped and there are barriers to entry that continue to exist – this is true in the US and in Austria, and elsewhere in the world. From my experience in business in the United States, I know there is no shortage of talent and ideas. There are, however, obstacles that can prevent good ideas from being pursued.

A main goal of the president’s summit, and of our discussion here this afternoon, will be to look at ways of reducing those obstacles, and possibly finding synergies between initiatives in Austria and the embassy’s outreach. I have heard of good initiatives in Austria, and some are represented here today.

Now let me once again thank you for coming and open the discussion.

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