At least 25 grants of up to $200,000 each will be awarded by the Economic Development Administration for the first phase of the “Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership” (IMCP) program. The program seeks to accelerate the resurgence of manufacturing within communities and help cultivate an environment that will create well-paying manufacturing jobs across the country. The grants will be awarded to communities so they can create implementation strategies. In addition, the EDA hopes to initiate public-private partnerships as a part of these strategies tailored toward local expertise and assets that will help grantees achieve the ultimate goals of job creation, adaptability, creativity and competitiveness among local governments to foster better economy. 

So what exactly does the Economic Development Administration do? It provides “strategic investments that foster job creation and attract private investment to support development in economically distressed areas of the United States.” The implementation strategies that applicants create need to keep those values at the forefront. Through IMCP, the EDA hopes to promote innovation and competitiveness to increase the number of jobs and improve the manufacturing industry within communities. Ideal applications will contain creative approaches to address rapidly evolving economic conditions – the grants seek to support adaptability as a key component of sustainability and job creation.

Both rural and urban local governments are encouraged to apply, and the deadline is September 13, 2013 for funding cycle 1 of FY 2014. For further grant information, click here. More information about FY 2014 funding cycles will be available at a later date, although some information is provided in the PDF under “Full Announcement” on Grants.gov.

Additional Resources:

• EDA website