US Economic Envoy to Northern Ireland Declan Kelly has confirmed that a Northern Ireland Investment Conference will take place this autumn in Washington.
The announcement followed discussions between US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, First Minister Peter Robinson, deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster on Tuesday.
The conference, which will take place over a one-day period in Washington, will be aimed at bringing together the leaders of some of the largest international companies already operating in Northern Ireland with potential investors.
A date for the event, which will be hosted by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, will be finalised in the near future.
"This investment conference is yet another indication of Secretary Clinton's commitment to building on the peace process in Northern Ireland and further underlines the US government's support for the immense progress that has been made in the region in the past several months", said Mr Kelly.
"We stated repeatedly in the last several months that if stability could be guaranteed in terms of the political institutions in Northern Ireland through the successful completion of negotiations on the devolution of policing and justice, then a great opportunity would exist for the region to move forward quickly with a range of initiatives in the area of economic investment."
Earlier Mr Kelly welcomed the announcement by the American Ireland Fund (AIF) of its intention to seek to raise $1m over the next three years for a new endowment to support the Northern Ireland Science Park (NISP) Connect program.
NISP Connect is a non-profit collaboration between the Northern Ireland Science Park, University of Ulster, Queen's University Belfast and the Agri Food & Biosciences Institute that helps develop new science and technology ventures in Northern Ireland.
In addition, the AIF and the Northern Ireland and US working groups set up to support the Envoy's economic mission have agreed to seek support for a new employee exchange program that will provide young professionals affiliated with NISP Connect an opportunity to spend one year working for a US corporation.
Mr Robinson and Mr McGuinness, who met President Obama at the White House on Wednesday, thanked the US administration for its support, particularly in recent months.
"The stability we are building undermines dissident activity. That stands whether we are talking about political dissidents or paramilitary dissidents", Mr Robinson said.
"A stable, peaceful and prosperous society is the antithesis of everything these people stand for."
Mr McGuinness said the Hillsborough Agreement provided the region with an opportunity for a new start.
"The creation of jobs and the underpinning of the peace process are intertwined and it is vital that we focus our efforts to ensure no community is left behind and all benefit from the prosperity that we are striving to create for all our people," Mr McGuinness said.
© UTV News