Enterra in Kurdistan

PRESS RELEASE: The Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq Selects Enterra Solutions, LLC, to Operate the Kurdistan Business Center (pdf)

Enterra sends this out today:

RESTON, Va. (January 22, 2008) - Enterra Solutions, LLC, has signed a services contract with the Minister of Trade for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to provide a full service Business Center in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The contract marks a new era for business and economic development in the Kurdistan region and provides a viable model for similar centers in other emerging market countries. Under the multi-year service contract, Enterra Solutions will establish and operate the Kurdistan Business Center in Erbil, Iraq, with a branch in Washington, DC and a future location in Europe.

The Center will provide a single point of contact for investors and businesses desiring to operate in the autonomous Kurdistan region. Through a number of connected activities, the Business Center will promote economic development and foreign direct investment in the Kurdistan region. The establishment of the Kurdistan Business Center is an integral part of Enterra Solutions' Development-in-a-Box[tm] offering to assist economic and social development in post-conflict and developing regions.

"The Kurdistan Business Center will be a major focal point for driving foreign direct investment and joint venture transactions in the region," explained Stephen F. DeAngelis, president and chief executive officer of Enterra Solutions. "By helping Iraqi businesses operate transparently using internationally accepted standards, the Business Center's goal is to attract and provide active assistance to international investors and companies outside of the region that desire to establish operations and/or partner with Kurdistan regional businesses."

The Center will identify international companies, facilitate and expedite investment and joint-venture transactions in the Kurdistan Region, especially agreements in support of a number of strategic critical infrastructure projects identified by the KRG. In addition, the Center's Erbil-based staff will provide marketing, technical expertise and ombudsman services aimed at attracting investment activities in the region. Enterra Solutions will train five local post-graduate students annually in sustainable economic development as part of a capacity building component of the contract. The Erbil-based Enterra Solutions' staff will be supported by the company's Washington Operations Center located in Reston, Virginia. Enterra Solutions is also establishing a Washington, DC branch of the KBC as well as a planned European branch office.

This Center will provide assistance to international investors, joint venture partners and Kurdistan regional industries seeking financing, economic advisory and marketing services and advice regarding working with strategic and financial partners, multi-lateral organizations and U.S. and KRG governmental organizations. The Kurdistan Business Center is the third major Enterra Solutions' project that has been awarded to the company recently in Iraq. The other two foundational projects, a multi-lingual business-to-business (B2B)/business-to-consumer (B2C) trading exchange and a multi-lingual call center, are being established to provide services under separate contracts with the Pentagon's Task Force to Improve Business and Stability Operations in Iraq, led by Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Business Transformation Paul Brinkley. The Task Force to Improve Business and Stability Operations in Iraq contracts were awarded to Enterra Solutions in November 2007 and January 2008, respectively.

Working with local entrepreneurs and international organizations, the Center expects to be a catalyst for job creation, especially in areas specifically targeted for development by the KRG: agriculture, energy, chemicals, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, banking and insurance services, construction materials, health, and education. The Business Center in Erbil will be the model for potential additional centers in the Kurdistan Region.

"The Business Center will be available to assist all regional businesses and international strategic and financial investors, but it will specifically concentrate on critical infrastructure and market sectors that are identified as competitively advantaged on a sustainable basis for the Kurdistan region," DeAngelis noted. "Progress in those areas will build much needed critical infrastructure and economic capabilities that should stimulate job creation, training and help anchor a diverse, vibrant and sustainable economy in the region."

To support its rapidly growing presence in Iraq, Enterra Solutions has entered into a set of unique strategic alliances with leading organizations: International Resources Group, Agility, One Network Enterprises and the UB Groups in the Kurdistan region. Additional partnerships with other international and regional companies will be announced in the coming weeks.

Comments

[Matthew Garcia]

Congrats and kudos

[zenpundit]

Plant as many platforms as you can.

[Michael]

A few years ago, Chirol of COMING ANARCHY posted a travelogue of a journey through Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Palestine; in it he described how some Western businesses (fast food, western-style gas stations) had cropped up in Lebanon. Thing is, I don't recall Lebanon ever being described as having a visionary government.

You mentioned in your description of DiB that it requires a visionary government to work, but I wonder if it could be adapted to a situation like Chirol saw in Lebanon at the time?