Five years since its inception, a US development agency competes with China on global projects

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. It “We need to be good partners while offering an alternative based on our values," said Scott Nathan, the chief executive officer of the development agency, who was in Angola last week with the president. Investments by the agency are having a “transformational impact on economic development while concretely advancing U.S. strategic interests,” Nathan said. In 2018, Congress passed a bipartisan bill that created the U.S. development agency, aimed at bringing private investments into low- and middle-income countries through tools such as equity investment, loan guarantee and political risk insurance. On Monday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken praised the agency for “reimagining how the U.S. does development” and said, through its work, the U.S. has “shown countries that they don't have to resort to projects that are poorly built, environmentally destructive, that import or abuse workers, that foster corruption or burden countries with unsustainable debt.” "We really are the partner of choice,” Blinken said.