For Immediate Release

LAGOS, NIGERIA (February 4, 2004) – Today, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) awarded a $284,215 grant to The Hospital Company Ltd. to partially fund a feasibility study on the development of a private hospital project in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.  Ms. Robyn Hinson-Jones, Consul General, signed an agreement conferring the grant on behalf of the U.S. Government in a ceremony held at the U.S. Consulate in Lagos.  Dr. Charles Okorie, Executive Vice-President of the Hospital Company Ltd., signed the agreement on behalf of the Grantee.

The Hospital Company Ltd., located in Lagos, Nigeria, is a subsidiary of the American Hospital Corporation, based in Lawrenceville, Georgia.  The Nigerian project sponsors propose to develop, construct, equip, and operate a 135-bed hospital, out-patient clinic, and medical office building complex.  Once completed, the hospital would offer advanced health care services in Port Harcourt, a major city in Nigeria’s underdeveloped but oil-rich delta region.  The project’s development is consistent with the Nigerian Government’s priority on increasing healthcare accessibility in Nigeria. 

The USTDA-funded study will examine the technical and economic viability of the proposed hospital project and analyze potential site locations.  The study will also investigate the financing mechanisms for the project, as well as evaluate the potential for funding from various sources.  The Peoples Group, of Arlington, Virginia, has been selected by the project sponsors to conduct the study and will contribute additional resources towards its completion.

The U.S. Trade and Development Agency advances economic development and U.S. commercial interests in developing and middle-income countries.  The agency funds various forms of technical assistance, feasibility studies, training, orientation visits and business workshops that support the development of a modern infrastructure and a fair and open trading environment.  USTDA’s strategic use of foreign assistance funds to support sound investment policy and decision-making in host countries creates an enabling environment for trade, investment and sustainable economic development.  In carrying out its mission, USTDA gives emphasis to economic sectors that may benefit from U.S. exports of goods and services.

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