国际英语新闻：U.S. government launches job-creating start-up initiative

WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. government announced Monday a national campaign to support job-creating start-up businesses in an effort to reduce the high unemployment rate.

Senior officials including Gary Locke, Secretary of the Commerce and Karen Mills, Administrator of the Small Business Administration launched the national campaign called "Startup America," which will encourage private sector investment in startups and small firms, accelerate research and address barriers to success for entrepreneurs and small businesses.

This initiative was important for U.S. entrepreneurs to reconnect with the U.S. tradition of pursuing innovation and scientific progress, which would help the nation end the current slow job growth momentum, said Locke.

"We are building on the success of last year's i6 Challenge, an innovative, 12 million U.S. dollars competitive grant program that rewarded teams across the country that are taking cutting-edge research out of the labs and getting it into the hands of entrepreneurs who can turn that research into new businesses and new jobs," Locke added.

This year, the United States would repeat the i6 challenge effort, with a focus on communities with novel strategies to spur the development of clean energy-related industries in their region, Locke added.

The White House announced on Monday the launch of a "Startup America Partnership," which would receive launch funding from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and the Case Foundation, serving as an independent private-sector alliance to increase the development and growth of innovative U.S. firms.

"America's story has been forged in large part by entrepreneurs who have against great odds created innovative products and services that have changed the world and created millions of jobs, " said Steve Case, co-founder of AOL and chairman of the Case Foundation.

This partnership would help bring together partners from across the private, public and non-profit sectors, working together toward a common goal-- supporting the entrepreneurs who were the lifeblood of the U.S. economy, said Carl Schramm, CEO of the Kauffman Foundation.

According to a White House statement, President Barack Obama proposes making permanent the elimination of capital gains taxes on key investments in small businesses.

The U.S. government also announced that the Small Business Administration will direct 2 billion dollars over the next 5 years to match private sector investment funding for startups.

In his State of the Union Address on January 25, President Obama vowed to support high-growth entrepreneurship across the country and to improve the unacceptable high unemployment situation.

Obama said, "Entrepreneurs embody the promise of America: the belief that if you have a good idea and are willing to work hard and see it through, you can succeed in this country. And in fulfilling this promise, entrepreneurs also play a critical role in expanding our economy and creating jobs. That's why we're launching Startup America, a national campaign to help win the future by knocking down barriers in the path of men and women in every corner of this country hoping to take a chance, follow a dream, and start a business."

U.S. unemployment rate, currently at 9.4 percent, is expected to remain at around 9 percent in 2011.