Economic growth requires a macro-policy environment that provides and supports private investment, while assuring equity and protection against abuse. The private sector needs the capacity to respond to growth opportunities, including access to financing on reasonable terms and the opportunity to connect with both suppliers and buyers. Equally essential is an efficient public sector that is able and willing to use the private sector to provide goods and public services. For more than 25 years, IRG has seamlessly integrated economic, technical, organizational and social factors to promote and advance economic growth. IRG’s landmark work has led to restructuring of the largest public enterprise in Egypt and new domestic and international markets for Senegalese small and medium enterprises.

Capabilities:

• Policy Analysis, Development, and Implementation for Economic Growth
• Enterprise Efficiency and Benchmarking
• Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development
• Corporatization/Privatization of Public Enterprises
• Investment Promotion
• Financing
• Trade
• Infrastructure Support – from Roads to Power Plants
• Knowledge Management
• Value Chain Analysis
  

Select projects include:

Creating Opportunities to Accelerate Economic Growth and Competitiveness
Through our “Seed-To-Supermarket” approach, IRG promotes economic growth and increased competitiveness and trade in Senegal. Our focus is on attracting private investment for efficient delivery of public goods or services, public policy reforms to improve Senegal’s business environment and supporting democratic and economic reforms already undertaken by the Government of Senegal. Senegal: Senegal Accelerated Growth and Increased Competitiveness (SAGIC)

Promoting Microenterprise Income Generation through Practice Communities
To strengthen USAID-funded microenterprise programs and activities worldwide, IRG led and maintained the development of USAID's dynamic knowledge-sharing tool, microLINKS. MicroLINKS is a Web-based program where development and financial services practitioners can share research, gather in a virtual meeting space, and explore new ways to advance the global success of these small-scale loans, often used to finance income generation activities in poverty-stricken areas.Accelerated Microenterprise Advancement Project (AMAP).
In the follow-up project Knowledge Driven Microenterprise Development, IRG collaborates with the prime contractor QED to maintain and expand microLINKS and Poverty Frontiers knowledge and learning portals, which provide learning opportunities for USAID Missions and microenterprise practitioners. Current features include a comprehensive library, online community areas, audio presentations and screen casts, expert-facilitated online conferences, a hotline expert feature, and a Google-based project map. Knowledge Driven Microenterprise Development.

Promoting Economic Growth through Support for Cultural and Environmental Preservation
Cyprus faces economic and policy challenges stemming from the resources gap between Turkish and Greek Cypriot communities. Facilitating reunification of the island requires promotion of sustainable economic growth and cultural conservation and restoration to bridge this resource gap. In this endeavor, IRG helped to build local capacity to protect and manage Cyprus’ rich natural and cultural resources. IRG addressed water conservation management issues, irrigated 18 farms with 90,000 tons of less water, cutting energy costs by 90 percent. Through the restoration of medieval architectural sites, traditional mills, and training in traditional handicrafts, IRG helped grow tourism through cultural heritage conservation and restoration efforts.  Cyprus: Cyprus Partnership for Economic Growth - Support for Activities that Value the Environment

Empowering Municipalities for Economic Development
IRG is working to empower municipalities to support local-level economic development through public-private partnerships and increased employment opportunities, and provide technical assistance in trade promotion, agribusiness, and economic growth. IRG will participate in the design, launch, and management of a knowledge-sharing portal to pool municipal initiatives and use the portal as a platform for investment opportunities. IRG provides communications and outreach services. We are also supporting economic development case studies and providing small grants to fund them. IRG is a subcontractor. Lebanon: Empowering Municipalities through Local Economic Development (EMLED)

Guiding Financial Reform in Post-Conflict Areas
IRG advisors in Iraq support economic reform, liberalized currency conversion, commercial law reform, customs/tax policy/collection reform and implementation, monetary policy, central banking and capital market reform, rehabilitation of banking operations, international trade policy development, and sound management of micro-credit programs. Iraq: Implementation of Emergency Relief and Short-term Rehabilitation Response

Increasing Enterprise, Market Systems, and Trade
IRG is working in Senegal to increase the productivity of rural production systems by strengthening community-based organizations, supporting policies that clarify local rights and responsibilities in natural resource management, training communities in sustainable land use, and developing non-traditional agricultural and non-timber forest products. IRG also manages a small-grants fund to support pilot activities, cover start-up costs of small enterprises, and to enable the participation and collaboration of local entities in rural production and natural resource management. Senegal: USAID Wula Nafaa Program

Reforming Economic Policy
With IRG assistance, 14 economic and natural resource policy reforms were incorporated into the Indonesian President's Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies. These ranged from eliminating trade regulations on plywood exports to abolishing monopolies in timber, plywood, and oil palm among others. Indonesia: Natural Resource Management II

Developing the Private Sector Market
With IRG's assistance, the Government of Nepal has developed and approved a reformed hydropower policy that will promote more investment, open the private sector to exporting hydroelectric power and broaden a sustainable domestic market for hydropower. Nepal: Private Sector Hydropower Development

Strengthening Public-Private Collaborations
Strengthening skills of private sector operators, IRG helped to convert long-term concessions of over 100,000 ha of publicly-held plantations, identified and developed training services for private sector operators, designed and implemented an investment promotion strategy, as well as expanded and diversified the plantation economy. Madagascar: Support Sustainable Environment and Forest Ecosystems

Building Competitiveness through CAFTA
IRG supported the Government of Honduras to focus its resources and activities to make local producers more competitive under the terms of the recently enacted Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). IRG developed alliances and partnerships with US firms, such as Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, to increase exports and trade from Honduras. Additionally, IRG assisted the Honduran government to meet its environmental compliance commitments under CAFTA. Honduras: Integrated Watershed Management

Strengthening Local Economic Development through Value Chains
The Baladiyat program, also known as Empowering Municipalities through Local Economic Development (EMLED), is working in marginalized areas with municipalities to increase employment and income through public-private partnerships (PPPs), promoting effective collaboration between municipalities and communities. The program’s value chain approach helps identify constraints and opportunities for growth in economic sectors in local communities. The project is implemented by Relief International (RI) with support from International Resources Group (IRG). Lebanon: Empowering Municipalities through Local Economic Development