Moscow Conference Highlights More Than $120 Million in Public-Private Partnerships

On October 13, USAID hosted a conference to highlight the mission's eight-year history of public-private partnerships with the Russian government, Russian and international corporations, and the non-profit community. 

Nearly 40 partnerships have been created since 2003, supporting projects which address socioeconomic issues such as child welfare, youth entrepreneurship, and financial transparency, areas in which USAID and its partners have a shared interest.

Partner organizations have included international companies such as Johnson & Johnson, Citibank, and Credit Suisse; Russian companies like Siberian Urals Aluminum Company (SUAL); and federal, regional, and municipal government administrations throughout Russia. 

These partnerships have helped to build schools in remote areas of Russia. They work to reduce the number of children in state institutions, and they provide treatment and care for people living with HIV/AIDS.  And they have helped improve the livelihood of Russians by engaging citizens in community development, creating jobs, and providing access to credit.

"It's amazing to see the satisfaction of young Russians entrepreneurs when they are able to expand their businesses and create jobs for other young people," said Boris Tkachenko, director of Youth Business Russia http://www.en.iblfrussia.org/, a program which has expanded to four cities thanks to support from USAID, the Royal Bank of Scotland, KPMG, regional Russian government administrations, and many other partners.

Speakers included Paige Alexander, USAID Assistant Administrator for Europe and Eurasia, and David Yakobashvili, former CEO of Wimm-Bill-Dann and a well-known authority on corporate social responsibility in Russia. 

Guests included representatives of the Russian and international private sector, the NGO community, and the Russian and U.S. governments.   The conference culminated in the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation between Cisco Systems and USAID worth up to $50 million.   

Cisco and USAID - $50 Million Partnership

The new memorandum establishes a framework for cooperation between USAID and Cisco to advance and promote the use of information communication technologies (ICT) by civil society, government and the broader public. 

It recognizes the interests of both parties in Russia's social and economic development, providing up to $50 million in funding and in-kind contributions to joint activities that will strengthen the capacity of Russian organizations to use ICT more effectively in their work.  

Among the activities specified in the agreement is a training program for IT professionals, Cisco Networking Academies for Public Service, which requires trainees to provide IT services to local non-profit and/or public organizations in order to receive their certificates.  

Another joint activity is the North Caucasus Entrepreneurship Program, which provides business training and development based on models developed by the Cisco Entrepreneur Institute.  The new memorandum furthers the objectives of a 2008 USAID-Cisco global memorandum of understanding.

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