Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) announces grant competition
Â
 Nationwide (BlackNews.com) — If you ever wanted to open an entrepreneurship center for minority business owners, here’s your chance. The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), a bureau at the U.S. Department of Commerce, has recently announced a major grant competition for candidates who want to open a business center in the Upper Midwest, Northeast, and West Coast (specifically Southern California) areas of the United States. Awards range from $225,000 to $355,000 annually, and the primary objective of your center must be to provide strategic business consulting services to minority firms that will result in increased public and private sector contracting opportunities and capital investments, ultimately leading to the creation of new U.S. jobs.
The grant award covers a five-year period, and selected candidates will initially be funded for the first award year with subsequent funding periods subject to their center’s performance and funding availability. Eligible applicants include for-profit entities (sole-proprietorships, partnerships, limited liability companies and corporations), non-profit organizations, state and local government entities, American Indian Tribes and educational institutions. To apply, you must download the application from the Announcement of Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) at www.MBDA.gov. The deadline is May 5, 2011, but MBDA will conduct a pre-application teleconference on Thursday, April 7.