Highlights:
About NODEC AND SODEC
District Export Councils are organizations of business leaders from local communities, appointed by various U.S. Secretaries of Commerce, whose knowledge of and expertise in international business provides a source of professional advice for their region's local firms. Closely affiliated with the U.S. Commerce Department’s Export Assistance Centers and the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service, the 59 DECs that exist throughout the country support the U.S. Government’s export promotion efforts. The two Ohio DECs are responsible for the creation of this website.
Currently there are approximately 1,500 DEC members who volunteer their time and specialized expertise to assist small and medium-sized businesses in their local communities establish or increase export sales, thus promoting our country’s economic growth and creating new and higher-paying jobs for their communities. DEC members also sponsor and participate in numerous trade promotion activities, as well as advocate for effective trade policy positions.
DEC Activities
District Export Councils encourage and support exports of goods and services that strengthen individual companies, stimulate U.S. economic growth and create jobs. Export expansion activities are accomplished by working with the U.S. Commercial Service Offices to provide opportunities to promote greater export activity at the local level while developing a trade assistance network.
The mission of the District Export Councils is supported through activities such as:
• Counseling and mentoring of local businesses in exporting;
• Identifying export financing sources for businesses;
• Creating greater export awareness in the business community locally;
• Identifying issues affecting export trade and implementation of suggestions for improvement;
• Advocating trade policy and legislation supporting exporters and the U.S. export sector;
• Supporting programs and services of the U.S. Commercial Service;
• Building local export assistance partnerships with other trade-related organizations;
• Providing export training and education through Cleveland State's GlobalTarget
Program and the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce's Export Success Program.
While DECs and individual DEC members engage in legislative advocacy and outreach regarding trade issues, DEC members are prohibited from being registered lobbyists and neither DECs nor DEC members engage in any activity which requires lobbying registration.
Promoting Non-Profit Organizations
The Ohio DEC focuses on promoting other non-profit organizations. One of the resources the Ohio DEC provides is a calendar for all surrounding non-profit events and/or conferences.
Enlarging Export Opportunites for American Firms
In 1960, the President asked the Secretary of Commerce to enlist the efforts of the U.S. business community in enlarging export opportunities for American firms. Responding to this challenge, the National Export Expansion Council was formed.
Export Business Assistance For Ohio and N. Kentucky Companies
The Ohio and Northern Kentucky District Export Councils created this website to give export companies an all-inclusive resource for international trade-related events in the Ohio and Northern Kentucky regions. This calendar contains training opportunities, geo-political events, and networking opportunities for not only Ohio companies, but those in the Northern Kentucky region, as well. We welcome you to our website and encourage your participation in the listed events.
In addition, DECs play a major role in the planning and coordination of export activities for their communities. As a lead organization serving the international business community, DECs have the capacity to facilitate development of an effective export assistance network and can assist in coordinating the activities of trade assistance partners to leverage available resources. DECs also serve as a communications link between the business community and the U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service, and support the export expansion activities of the U.S. Commerce Department in a variety of ways within their communities.
While DECs are a creation of the U.S. Government and individual DEC members receive governmental appointments. Neither DECs nor DEC members represent the U.S. Government in their capacity as DECs or as DEC members, respectively.
While DECs and individual DEC members engage in legislative advocacy and outreach regarding trade issues, DEC members are prohibited from being registered lobbyists and neither DECs nor DEC members engage in any activity which requires lobbying registration.
