David Altman, The US Export Council.
The US Export Council specializes in facilitating market entry for US companies to the Middle East and Africa. Its consultants include former government, foreign trade, legal, investment, media and marketing experts.
We offer consulting, marketing and media skills to U.S. companies and access to our network and services within the US on behalf of our internationally based clients.
The US Export Council started officially in January 1992 and today has clients in six countries including the United States, UAE, North Africa and Southern Africa.
In 1993, with the support from U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Ron Brown, President Bill Clinton and Nelson Mandela, we developed the annual "Made In USA Expo" in Johannesburg. Bringing the first US companies to a Post Apartheid, South Africa. These events, soon became the largest showcases of US Products and Services in Southern Africa.
According to the US Department of Commerce, the US Export Council's efforts in the area of bi-lateral trade generated in excess of $2 billion in new exports from the United States to Southern Africa, in addition to numerous joint ventures, investments and technology transfers.
In South and East Africa, Mr. Altman was instrumental in opening the doors to the first formal trade and investment between Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and South Africa in over thirty years.
We also played a role in South Africa's first Post Apartheid $750 million bond issue, which was managed by Goldman Sachs in London and the Swiss Bank Corporation.
Similarly, in Kuwait in 1995, 1996 and 1997 under the auspices ofU.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker and the U.S. Department of Commerce, our team launched the first "Made In USA" events in Kuwait City which produced joint ventures and significant additional U.S Exports
to that region.
Building on these successes, we have over a decade, consulted with dozens of U.S. companies, guiding them in successful entry to high growth markets in The Middle East and Africa.
In the United Arab Emirates we recently concluded a deal with Tejari a division of Dubai World providing electronic access for small and medium sized US exporters to the Middle East export markets.
We also provide targeted services to internationally based clients looking for business opportunities and market entry in to the U.S.
Prior to joining the US Export Council, Mr. Altman was President of East West, a management and marketing company based in Los Angeles and Milan, Italy for 10 years.
Mr. Altman serves on the Advisory Board of Disaster Psychiatry Outreach in New York and has worked in support of Amnesty International, UNICEF, The International Rescue Committee, El Rescate and the Red Cross
Mr. Altman also serves as President of his media firm, Jungle Media Ltd. which in addition to film finance, and public relations has produced films for television, most recently Dead at Daybreak, released as "Orion" an award winning, foreign language detective series, based on the best selling novel by Deon Meyer.
Founder Global Leadership Institute (GLI) in New York, a social entrepreneurship venture.
GLI was formed to help build Southern Africa’s capacities and address urgent matters of human concern. Partnering with leading institutions and experts in Southern Africa and around the world, programs created by GLI are designed to teach essential leadership skills, analytical thinking, long-term planning, collaborative decision-making and problem-solving
Mr. Altman was the Founding Publisher of South Africa, The Journal of Trade, Industry and Investment which received a Golden Ink Award in New York for publishing excellence.
http://www.usexportcouncil.com
