7. Expand DFC’s technical assistance grantmaking
8. Build up specialized intermediaries to manage connectivity-focused investments
9. Support collection of open telecom data
10. Provide demonstration capital to fuel innovation in this space.

Read all of our recs in detail at the link up top! ☝️

1. ⬆️ the DFC’s investment capacity
2. Eliminate need for DFC to notify Congress for deals over $10m
3. Allow DFC to take returns from equity investments into account
4. Expand countries DFC can work in
5. Restructure DFC around specific regions & sectors
6. ⬆️ patient, concessionary financing

DFC must be reauthorized this year, which provides an ideal opportunity to prepare the agency to finance a historic wave of transactions to connect the unconnected, bringing massive economic, strategic, and national security benefits to the US & its allies. 10 recs to make DFC fit for this purpose:

Existing US efforts are under-resourced & perpetuate a status quo of investing in large telecoms which lack the incentives & capabilities to reach the unconnected. DFC has money, but it lacks playbook, pipeline, partners, expertise & vehicles to finance connectivity where most impactful.

The PRC's approach is inherently state-led and finance-first. The PRC is able to exert substantial influence over what firms build the networks, the technologies they use, & the selection of network operators; they shape the policy environment to suit their strategic interests at every step.

It's also strategic. The PRC knows this - in Africa, it spends more money here than all African nations, G7, and multilat agencies COMBINED. In a conflict scenario, the PRC could leverage these structures to gain valuable intel, or shut down communications, greatly impacting US ability to maneuver.

Connecting the unconnected can bring
-Up to 2 trillion dollars in global internet infrastructure contracts;
-Billions in returns from financing those construction efforts;
-Billions in annual revenue from providing internet services; &
-A vast new customer base for US tech & online businesses.