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Today, ASP hosted a roundtable discussion involving panel speakers with varying perspectives and experiences on the idea of entrepreneurship and national security.

The panel speakers included Philip Auerswald, Nathan Hodge, Ashley Chandler, ASP adjunct fellow Peter Choharis, and was moderated by ASP fellow Joshua Foust.

YOU CAN LISTEN TO THE EVENT

HERE

The very lively discussion centered around two themes: what the situation of foreign aid has been in the past and what changes could be made for the future. All of the panel speakers also spoke about the importance of fostering development in post-conflict situations and its impact on US national security.

Ms. Chandler, a senior manager at the non-profit organization Vital Voices, mentioned that the international affairs budget was only one percent of the overall federal budget. However, despite the amazing tools of development finance possessed by the US government towards development, these tools are not used enough.

Mr. Auerswald, a senior fellow at the Kauffman Foundation and an associate professor at George Mason University, stated that entrepreneurship promotes dynamic economic growth and also creates jobs. Unfortunately, current policy often focuses on funding the incumbent businesses to grow which blocks new firms from entering.

Unlike the other participants, Mr. Hodge, a Wall Street Journal reporter, was not so confident in the abilities of the US government to foster entrepreneurship. His concern was whether the government was promoting real entrepreneurship or fake entrepreneurship and discussed the US military “love affair” with development and aid.

Finally, Mr. Choharis spoke about how aid dollars are often given with expectations of results and the hope of the funding being “well spent”. However, this focus often leads to resentment on both sides and tends to be a short-sighted approach. He also spoke about the difficulties in getting capital from private businesses and their concern over the high risk environments of post-conflict regions.

Today’s discussion on entrepreneurship and national security will most likely not be the last on this topic.

There is widespread concern over the ineffectiveness of US foreign aid and there is interest for new and innovate ways to promote development in national security.

LEARN MORE HERE:

EXPEDITIONARY ECONOMICS WHITE PAPER

EXPEDITIONARY ECONOMICS FACT SHEET

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