Following up on a pledge in President Obama’s June 2009 Cairo speech, the Departments of State and Commerce convened earlier this week the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship. The purpose of the summit was to “highlight and celebrate the work and talents of many great entrepreneurs from [Muslim majority countries] and Muslim communities around the world” and to provide “a platform for foreign participants to connect with American stakeholders and develop partnerships that provide innovative solutions and support entrepreneurial ecosystems.”

During an address to the Summit’s participants, President Obama noted the importance of exchanges in the relationship between the United States and Muslim majority countries, as well as the fact that the United States is “launching several new exchange programs”:

I also made it clear in Cairo that we needed something else -- a sustained effort to listen to each other and to learn from each other, to respect one another. And I pledged to forge a new partnership, not simply between governments, but also between people on the issues that matter most in their daily lives -- in your lives.

By listening to each other we’ve been able to partner with each other. We’ve expanded educational exchanges, because knowledge is the currency of the 21st century. Our distinguished science envoys have been visiting several of your countries, exploring ways to increase collaboration on science and technology.

…The United States is launching several new exchange programs. We will bring business and social entrepreneurs from Muslim-majority countries to the United States and send their American counterparts to learn from your countries.

So women in technology fields will have the opportunity to come to the United States for internships and professional development. And since innovation is central to entrepreneurship, we’re creating new exchanges for science teachers.

We’re forging new partnerships in which high-tech leaders from Silicon Valley will share their expertise -- in venture capital, mentorship, and technology incubators -- with partners in the Middle East and in Turkey and in Southeast Asia.

And tonight, I can report that the Global Technology and Innovation Fund that I announced in Cairo will potentially mobilize more than $2 billion in investments. This is private capital, and it will unlock new opportunities for people across our countries in sectors like telecommunications, health care, education, and infrastructure.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on Tuesday the launch of one of these new exchange programs, Partners for a New Beginning, which will “engage the private sector in outreach to Muslim communities around the world.” Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will chair the new initiative. Said Secretary Clinton:

Nearly one year ago at Cairo University, President Obama called for a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world -- a new beginning based on mutual interests and mutual respect, shared values, and shared responsibility. And since then, we have worked to put that vision into practice through our policies and our partnerships -- not only with governments, but with the private sector, civil society, citizens worldwide.

This is a high priority for both the President and myself. We really believe that person-to-person diplomacy in today's world is as important as what we do in official meetings in national capitals across the globe. It can’t be achieved, though, just by our government asserting it. It can only be achieved by the kind of public-private partnerships that the United States is uniquely known for and which we are unveiling today: people and groups working across sectors, industries; working together with persistence and creativity to fulfill that promise of a new beginning and translate it into positive benefits.