RECENT
ACTIVITIES
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RECENT
ACTIVITIES
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5th
World Chambers Congress
ICC World Chambers Federation (WCF), alongwith The Union of Chambers and commodity exchanges of Turkey, hosted the 5th World Chambers Congress in Istanbul, Turkey, from 4-6 July 2007. The theme of the Congress was "Partnership for Prosperity" Held every two years, the World Chambers Congress has established an enviable reputation as the place where chamber and business leaders get to know international peers and share experience and best practice on grassroots issues that have a direct impact on the chamber of commerce community. The ICC India delegation to this important event was led by Mr. Saroj Kumar Poddar, President, ICC India and included senior business leaders Mr. R.V. Kanoria, Vice President, ICC India & Chairman, Kanoria Chemicals; Mr Yogendra Kr. Modi, Immediate Past President, ICC India & Chairman, YKM Holdings; Mr. Hari Shankar Singhania, Past President, ICC & President, J K organisation; Mr S.K. Birla, Past President, ICC India & Director, Birla Group; Mr P.K Ghosh,Chairman, ERCOM Engineering Pvt Ltd; Mr Sudhir Jalan, Past President, ICC India & Vice Chairman, SICPA India Ltd; Mr. Chandrakant Salunkhe, Executive Director, Jagatik Marathi Chamber of Commerce & Industries; Mr Mahendra K Sanghi, Past President, ICC India & Chairman & Mg Director, Sanghi Organisation; Mr. Alop K Mittal, Advisor, FICCI; and Mr Ashok Ummat, Executive Director, ICC India. The
5th World Chambers Congress set new attendance records, doubling attendance
since the last congress in Durban in 2005. Delegates this year come
from war-torn countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Sudan, as well
as from a wide range of developing and developed economies including
Brazil, China, Finland, India, Iran, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia,
Togo, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States, Venezuela,
Vietnam and Zambia. Turkish
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan inaugurated the Congress stressing
the importance of humanitarian values, peace and stability to continued
economic development in Turkey and the rest of the world. Mr. Rona Yircali, Chair of the World Chambers Federation, addressed the congress during the opening ceremony, underscoring WCF's commitment to driving growth and expansion of chambers around the world. "We are the backbone of the chamber community, providing support and facilitating exchange among our members and beyond," he said. Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright delivered a keynote address during a plenary session on how to better manage global risks through closer collaboration between business and government. Mr.
Mohammad Yunus, who won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his breakthrough
work in the field of microcredit in Bangladesh, addressed a plenary
session on developing small and medium-sized enterprises. The charismatic
founder of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, told delegates attending the
Congress that global poverty could be eradicated easily and that business
people could play a vital role by creating "social businesses"
or projects whose principal aim is to achieve a social good. ICC India delegation participated actively in the deliberations of the Congress. Mr Saroj Kumar Poddar, President, ICC India addressed the panel discussion on "Beyond Borders - Chambers and Migration". The Session focused on the consequences of globalisation on mobility of people within countries and beyond their borders. The changing demographics of both age and ethnicity would continue to have profound effect on local economies and the operation of labour market. Mr Poddar emphasized the critical role of chambers in the evolving global scenario and felt that developed countries will face a considerable challenge in the coming years in terms of labour shortages, increasing pension burden and an altered nature of the markets that they face. International migration of workers, he felt, will work as an important tool to address the challenges of the new demographic global picture and also help businesses meet their needs for human capital. Chambers can work proactively with Governments and play a critical role in ensuring greater international cooperation, especially in the movement of natural persons. The Plenary Session on "Threats to Multilateralism" focused on the current play of multilateral trade negotiations and the need for businesses to work their Governments for a successful conclusion of the Doha Round. Addressing the Session, Mr R V Kanoria, Vice-President, ICC India, highlighted that multilateralism had immense influence on domestic policy changes and cited India as an example. He felt that levels of economic development were yet to converge and one of the biggest issues in the Doha Round was politically sensitive agriculture issue. The Chairman of ICC, Mr Marcus Wallenberg called on all nations to bridge out differences and work for the successful conclusion of the Round. Mr Yogendra Kr Modi, Immediate Past President, ICC India, speaking at the Session on "World Class Cities - profiling the dynamism of our local business community" highlighted the role played by FICCI in the re-organisation of the entertainment sector in Mumbai. As a follow-up to his presentation, the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce will bring a delegation of leading industrialists to FRAMES 2008. Mr. Mahendra Sanghi, Past President, ICC India, addressed the workshop session on "National Chambers of Commerce". The role of Chambers of Commerce, he said, had undergone tremendous metamorphosis over the years. Liberalisation of economic policies, with decreasing role of Government, had thrown up new challenges for Chambers and business associations. The focus now had to be on activities, which will help businesses in their growth process and also help chambers generate resources to sustain their activities. Mr Sanghi also highlighted the turnaround story of ASSOCHAM. Mr.
Rona Yircali, ICC World Chambers Federation Chair, brought the 5th
World Chambers Congress to a close and, in a special ceremony, handed
over the hosting of the congress from Istanbul to Kuala Lumpur, where
the biennial congress will take place in 2009. The event was well timed for Turkey, a country that had made great strides in the 21st century in reforming its economy, boosting economic growth and attracting foreign direct investment. With its strategic geographic position straddling two continents, Turkey was poised to serve as a bridge between the economies to the east and to the west.
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