Arlington, VA – The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) announced new funding to strengthen public procurement of quality infrastructure in seven Pacific Island countries. Specifically, USTDA will fund training under its Global Procurement Initiative (GPI) on best practices, models and analysis tools for governments to obtain the best value for their money. Director Enoh T. Ebong made the announcement in Fiji on the second anniversary of the U.S. government’s Indo-Pacific Strategy launch.

“Strong, transparent public procurement systems allow countries to evaluate proposals based on long-term lifecycle costs and best value, rather than relying on lowest-cost bids that can result in poor-quality infrastructure and failed development outcomes,” said Director Ebong. “Our training is intended to generate the best possible outcomes for our Pacific Island partners. This includes best value for their tax dollars and greater competition for their infrastructure procurements from a wider range of international companies, including those from the United States.”

USTDA’s assistance will include in-country training and a study tour to the United States. The three-day training workshop, to be held in Fiji, will convene mid- to senior-level procurement officials from Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. The study tour will bring up to 17 Pacific Islands procurement officials from these countries to the United States to learn about effective procurement models through engagement with counterparts at the U.S. federal, state, and local levels.

This activity advances the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment to deliver game-changing projects to close the infrastructure gap in developing countries. It also supports the Pacific Quality Infrastructure Principles agreed to by 18 Pacific countries and territories at the November 2023 Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Leaders’ Meeting.       

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The U.S. Trade and Development Agency helps companies create U.S. jobs through the export of U.S. goods and services for priority infrastructure projects in emerging economies.  USTDA links U.S. businesses to export opportunities by funding project preparation and partnership building activities that develop sustainable infrastructure and foster economic growth in partner countries.

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