Daily Times

Our diplomatic model for achieving progress through national strategic priorities is defined by the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR), a joint product of the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Department of State.

The State Department said in 2015 that the QDDR “provides a blueprint for advancing America’s interests in global security, inclusive economic growth, climate change, accountable governance and freedom for all.” The last QDDR in 2015 was conceptualized as a foundation to harness today’s technology and innovation to advance diplomatic and development progress. The State Department today still shows strong promise to ensure continuity of this work despite the perceived turbulence, including the upcoming Global Entrepreneurship Summit, co-hosted by the government of India on the theme, “Women First, Prosperity for All.” Invitees are selected from embassies around the globe who are engineering the women’s entrepreneurship movement in the venture field and shaping our global progress in gender equality. The three-day event is expected to feature a series of mentoring and networking sessions to ensure the vibrancy women’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. What surprises me, however, is the missing dialogue around social entrepreneurship. True, it was curated to promote inclusion of formerly marginalized groups with perceived external social impact on prospective local economies and communities, but when a social panel was pitched at the forum, it was quickly rejected.

Published in Daily Times, November 26^th 2017.