Chamber Program 2012

Transcription

1 Chamber Program 2012 New Country, New Approach January 13, 2012 The first year of Country Sint Maarten, since October 10, 2010, was a year of learning and adaptation. In fact the past year served for Government and the Stakeholders to adapt to the new system and to learn how to act as a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands and without the traditional layer of a Federal Government. In this process of change, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, as the umbrella organization representing the private sector, must utilize its unique position of being an Advisor to Government to help and assist in a more effective and result driven manner, with the ultimate goal being: more sustainability and further improvement of the Economic Development of Sint Maarten. For the last few years, the Chamber has embarked on multiple initiatives, some of them have been completed, and others are in their final stage of implementation. The Executive Board wishes to finalize all these initiatives on the Chamber program for the year 2012, while dealing with all current affairs related to the private sector. The priorities of the Chamber achievements for 2012 can be divided into 3 sections: Chamber Internal Affairs, Chamber Local Involvement and Chamber Regional and International participation. N.B. The list of priorities listed below is not in any chronological order as the Board needs to approve them and establish timelines and deadlines for their realization. I. The Chamber Internal Affairs: Now that the physical revamp of the Chamber s facility is completed, the managerial positions filled and the registry software installed, what need to be done in 2012 is as follows: 1. The GAMMA Software: Considering the multiple pressures to share the data with certain government entities, the Chamber registry software must be completely finalized as soon as possible for the Board to determine the final conditions for its accessibility by third parties. The Executive Board considers that this year s MIS committee (to be chaired by Mr. Ajay Rawtani) must prepare, in collaboration with the 1

2 Director, the Office Manager and the IT Manager, an assessment of the situation and a plan of action. 2. The Chamber Personnel: The Executive Board considers it urgent that a review, an evaluation and the training of all the Chamber personnel must take place as soon as possible to determine the different tasks and responsibilities of the employees. The Director is instructed to prepare of job descriptions of each Chamber employee, and to identify an independent person/entity to do the evaluation and prepare the TOR for the training of the personnel. While the personnel are being trained, a salary scale will be established based on performance. 3. The Collection of the Chamber dues: An efficient system of collection must be put in place for the collection of membership dues after which a registry clean-up must be done to be able to have the most accurate data. The Executive Board would like to suggest the approach of hiring 2 or 3 local unemployed youth and to train them for this task. The team will also have the necessary tools, such as uniforms and transportation. The Director is charged with the preparation and submission of the different offers for the uniforms and the transportation vehicle. 4. The Chamber Ordinance & Standing Order: The Federal Ordinance, under which the Chamber functioning is regulated, dates as far back as 1945 and amended several times through the years, the last amendment dates as far back as September Now that we are Country, we need to start preparing a Country Ordinance. In the planned ordinance we can adjust certain aspects according to the Sint Maarten specifics. Once approved by the relevant authorities, the Ordinance will also serve to place the Chamber in its rightful position, as no mention was made in the Country Constitution. The Executive Board thinks that this initiative must start by having a Notary to make an interactive presentation of the existing Chamber laws to the Board. This way, while learning about rights and obligations, all Board Members will have the chance to expose their thoughts and recommendations. Notary Francis Gijsbertha was identified to carry out this task and the Director was instructed to initiate the process. 2

3 5. The Registry Regulation: In December 2009, 2 sets of laws were approved by the then Parliament of the Netherlands Antilles. Some parts of the laws were implemented since January 2010, other parts still pending and must be finalized as soon as possible. The most important part to be finalized this year is the obligation of businesses to include the Chamber Registration number on all their company letter heads, invoices, bills of order etc. The Executive Board has identified September 1, 2012 as the deadline for businesses to comply with this part of the law. This date was chosen as it corresponds with the termination of the country phone code 599 and its permanent replacement with This way, it will be cheaper for businesses to comply with 2 regulations with one cost. The Director was instructed to start preparing a plan of approach, including an information campaign. II. The Chamber Local Involvement: In representing the Private Sector, the unique position of the Chamber as Advisor to Government allows its involvement at the local level to be more effective and more productive. This can be done through the Chamber representatives in the several committees and through ad hoc interventions. 1. The Advisory Committees and the Standing Committees: Provision is made in the Chamber Rules of Procedure to permit the review and update of the different committees (Art.16, Art.17 and Art.18). At this stage of the Country, the Executive Board considers it necessary to review and update all the committees and their representatives and to establish more regular and efficient ways of communication between the Board and the representatives. 2. Collaboration with Government Apparatus: A definitive approach must be established and approved by the board with regards to the most legal and ethical way of sharing the Chamber Data Base. This process must be solely motivated by the willingness to help government in having their data base updated to seek, among other things, the Broadening of the Tax Base. The Executive Board considers that it is time for the Chamber to increase the collaboration with government in all areas to help improve the economic climate. Besides the sharing of data, other ways of assistance 3

4 could be the initiation of sectoral surveys, the first ones could be in the Marine sector and in the Condominium/Timeshare sector. The primary intention of these surveys is to ensure that all businesses operating on the Dutch Side are registered at the Chamber, while the results of the surveys, once shared with government, will help to better regulate the economy. 3. The Business License Advisory: Since the decision taken a few years ago to have this task fulfilled by the Chamber management instead of the Licensing Committee, the Board has not been informed of any major hiccups or difficulties. Nonetheless, at the indication of the Director that no requests were received by the Chamber since November 2011, the executive Board find it urgent to review the entire situation and make a realistic assessment for the Board to take a decision accordingly. The Director will contact VOSEC to inquire about the requests. 4. The Labor/Work Permits issues: In conjunction with the business licensing, and in light of the high rate of unemployment, especially among the youth, it is high time now to also assess the situation and advise Government accordingly 5. Further Assistance to Local Small Businesses: In continuation with the initiative that started last year with the Small Hotels sector, further assistance is needed from the Chamber, especially with regards to soft loans through the Development Bank OBNA and/or Commercial Banks. In expediting the identification of the different possibilities, the Executive Board is of the opinion that the Chamber must also take a proactive approach with the commercial banks and encourage them for more involvement. E.g. the training program that the WIB did in the past that included training courses for local small businesses. 6. The Chamber Business Directory: Determined to be an additional tool of information, locally and regionally, the business directory should be re-commissioned. The Executive Board is of the opinion that this initiative should not cost the Chamber anything in the first place and that it should be implemented through a transparent public bid, with specific terms of reference allowing the Chamber possibilities of monitoring and control. 4

5 7. Cost of Living and Cost of Doing Business: The cost of living is an issue that has been frequently raised, especially by the employee s organizations. It has also been a concern of the Chamber through the years, as the maintaining or the decrease of the cost of living will give more buying power to the employee s salary. The cost of doing business is of greater importance to the Chamber as the business community is often complaining about. As these costs are ultimately carried over to the consumer, the effects are even greater to the entire society. The President has indicated that this year, the Chamber must look at this situation diligently. One of the avenues the President is strongly advising to look at is the food basket and increase it in quantity and quality. He took the example of Curacao who just implemented the addition of fruits and vegetables to their government controlled food basket. For the cost of doing business, in continuation with the past efforts of the Chamber to have some relief for the business from GEBE, more areas of concerns must be added such as telecommunication and interest rates that could encourage more local investments. 8. The Consumer Protection Act/Authority & BBB: The Consumer Protection process initiated by SBDF is also an additional avenue for the Chamber to engage in, along with SBDF and Government, as it was indicated to Parliament during the meeting last year. In consideration of the increased number of consumer complaints the Chamber has been receiving, the President is of the opinion that it is now high time to join forces with SBDF (the project owner) and Government to establish this mechanism that will primarily serve, not only the protection of the consumers, but most importantly to protect the reputation of Sint Maarten as a shopping destination. The other consideration, the President is advising, is the establishment of a Better Business Bureau that will be tasked with the dissemination of information on best practices with regards to the further protection of businesses and the consumers. For that purpose, a section of the Chamber will be remodeled to serve as a Chamber Desk where information will also be provided for the visitors and potential investors. 5

6 9. Security, Crime Prevention and Youth Vocational Education: The security issues our business community is lately experiencing are intertwined mainly with the present high youth unemployment. As much as the Security Camera System that the Chamber has now been championing for years is an important tool of prevention, it is also equally important to have a proactive role with government and the businesses in creating more job opportunities through Training and Education for the unemployed youth. With the experience as Chairman of the Security Committee, the President is insisting that this year the Chamber should play a bigger role in the crime prevention through training and education. The multiple opportunities that exist in several sectors must be conducive to much more youth training, employment and entrepreneurship. One of the ideas the President is strongly recommending that the Chamber should explore is the encouragement of youth to be more involved in studying hotel management, hospitality and culinary arts. This can be done through the University of St. Martin in similar way what the Hotel Academy is doing in Curacao III. The Chamber Regional and International Participation: Considering the international economic difficulties the United States and Europe are presently experiencing, Sint Maarten must seriously look at another pillar to add to the Economy. What could be considered as a realistic new pillar to consider is becoming a Supply Platform similar to what Panama has to offer, an E-Zone Park offering goods to the region. With the reputation of Sint Maarten, its geographic location and its sophisticated infrastructure, the Chamber can lead this process in partnership with government and the business community. 1. Trade Shows and Trade Missions: Now that we are a country, the work done in the past 7 years through the Chamber affiliation with CAIC can be further sustained through the official support of government to the private sector. In fact, the involvement of politicians in the attendance and organization of Trade Shows and Trade Missions often leads to more economic cooperation and development The Executive Board considers this is a priority and believes that the first mission should be to Panama. This will permit to the Chamber and the members to learn about the distribution platform Panama presently enjoys. In this initiative, the Chamber will also try to make use of the offer 6

7 made by Copa Airlines of 10 round trip tickets and to assist us in the logistics of the mission. A decision was taken to approach the Tourist Bureau for assistance to start the talks with Copa Airlines. Such initiative will certainly open additional opportunities from the South American market. In the same effort, the President is recommending that the Chamber should seek additional ways in promoting Sint Maarten as a Shopping Destination for the Caribbean. This must be done by talking with the regional airlines like LIAT and RedJet for them to consider lower fare for passengers and cargo. To achieve optimal results in this initiative, the Chamber is collaborating with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Tourism and the Tourist Bureau to conjointly seek the best possible approach to achieve this goal. 2. Regional Economic Summit: In furthering Sint Maarten exposure to the rest of the Caribbean, holding an economic summit, consisting of prominent business persons and government officials, will certainly open multiple opportunities for the local businesses and for Foreign Direct Investment. In line with the Chamber decision to host the CAIC 7 th Annual Private Sector Meeting with the region Ministers of Economy in Sint Maarten this year, the Executive Board thinks that it could be a good idea to include a Regional Economic Summit. Decisions were taken to inquire about the projected dates of the CAIC event and to establish a special committee to be tasked with the early planning. One of the possibilities that must be explored is EU funding through INTERREG, if the summit is organized in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce of the French Side. 3. Additional Funding Support: With the funding from the Netherlands, especially for the Social Economic Initiative (SEI) is being phased out by the end of 2012, additional sources of funding need to be explored for the sustainability and the further development of the economy. Other funding possibilities from the Netherlands and from other sources must be identified. 4. Advice on CARICOM & OECS Relations: With the latest decision taken during the Kingdom meeting in the Netherlands on the autonomy of the different countries in their foreign economic relations, the Chamber must further emphasize to Government the urgency to finalize the association with CARICOM. Possibilities to also join the OECS must be explored and advised to government. 7

8 In following up with the Chamber Advice to Government to apply for an Associate Member status with CARICOM, a decision was taken to forward a letter to Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams on the issue and to also request a meeting with her to have an update and further discuss any bottlenecks. 5. The Dutch Caribbean Association of Chambers: In following up with the state of affairs on the creation of the DCAC, along with the chambers of Curacao and Aruba, certain pending issues must be looked at and determined, e.g. the official language of the association. After indication by the Director that the process is presently stalled waiting on the reaction of Aruba Chamber, the Executive Board has determined that this will be the occasion for the entire concept to be reviewed and decided upon by the Board. One of the most important points that raised much discussion last year was the official languages of the planned association; the majority of the members were of the opinion that although Dutch is the language, the English must be also considered. This is very important as Dutch and English are the 2 official languages of Country Sint Maarten and that most of our business community are not well versed in Dutch 6. Relationship with the French Side: Restart the dialogue with the French Chamber of Commerce to seriously seek ways of collaboration in the development of the island as a whole. A decision was taken to organize a meeting with the French Side Chamber to determine a realistic approach toward more effective ways of collaboration and cooperation. 7. Public Private Partnership: Revive the decision taken by the Board in early 2011 to have a more effective approach to the establishment of a Public/Private Partnership with Government. Considering the latest decision of the Kingdom partners during their meeting in the Netherlands, to give autonomy to each country in their Economic Foreign Relations, the Executive Board is of the opinion that the Chamber must explore all the possibilities to continue the deliberation on the Public Private Partnership possibilities. A decision was taken to have a meeting with Mr. Bert van Geel, who is assigned by Foreign Affairs 8

9 Ministry to assist Sint Maarten with its foreign relations, and explore all possibilities. In this regard, the President is suggesting that a new committee is established Regional & International Relations Committee that will enclose the CAIC task and all other future opportunities in the building of the regional and international economic development of Country Sint Maarten Additionally, for the establishment of a more effective and coherent partnership with Government, the creation of a Public Private Partnership Bureau within the Chamber s offices, is the best way to go. All of the above action points of the Chamber program for the year 2012 are summarized in the chart below. The start dates are just an indication but must be used as a reference to be respected as much as possible. The end dates will be filled after the preliminary findings in the preparation of each point s implementation. Once the program is approved by the Board, budgets for each implementation, where needed, will be prepared and submitted for the approval of the Treasurer. The advice of the Board is also needed to establish the selection of the Committees and the persons who are most suitable to carry out the implementation of the different programs. The ones selected in the chart below are what the executive Board thinks as the best to assign for the implementation. The Chamber Finances: The Executive Board is in agreement with the approach of the newly appointed Treasurer, Mr. Abdul Meyers, that before preparing the budget 2012 and other financial instruments a presentation is made to the Board on the 2011 budget versus actual and on the overall financial state of the Chamber. This approach will not only give the Board a good picture on the Chamber finances, but it will also give the members the opportunity to have their input in the 2012 budget. It will also allow the different Chamber Committees to establish the respective budgets needed to carry out their tasks. 9

10 Chamber Program 2012 Project/Program Start Date Finish Date Budget Committee/Person The Chamber Internal Affairs The GAMMA Software: 2004 June 2012 MIS Com, ED, OM, ITM, EB The Chamber Personnel January 2012 ED, EB, OM The Collection of the Chamber dues February 2012 ED, OM, FM, EB The Chamber Ordinance & Standing Order January 2012 BD, EB, ED The Registry Regulation February 2012 September 2012 ED, EB The Chamber Local Involvement The Advisory & Standing Committees January 2012 BD, EB Collaboration with Government Apparatus February 2012 BD, EB, ED The Business License Advisory February 2012 ED, OM, EB The Labor/Work Permits issues February 2012 Tripartite, dismissal, SER, BD, Ajay R. Further Assistance to Local SMEs March 2012 EB, ED, BD, Junior Lake The Chamber Business Directory April 2012 BD, EB, ED Cost of Living and Cost of Doing Business March 2012 BD, EB, ED, PPP Bureau The Consumer Protection Act/Authority February 2012 BD, EB, ED, PPP Bureau Security and Youth Vocational Education February 2012 BD, EB, ED, Security Com. PPP Bureau The Chamber Regional and International Participation Trade Shows and Trade Missions April 2012 Trade Com, EB, BD, ED Regional Economic Summit May 2012 Reg. & Int. Com, EB, ED Additional Funding Support March 2012 EB, ED Advice on CARICOM & OECS Relations January 2012 Reg. & Int. Com, EB, ED The Dutch Caribbean Association of Chambers ED, BD Relationship with the French Side February 2012 EB, ED, BD Public Private Partnership January 2012 Reg. & Int. Com, EB BD BD: Board of Directors EB: Executive Board ED: Executive Director TR: Treasurer OM: Office Manager ITM: IT Manager FM: Finance Manager 10