The European Chamber Pearl River Delta (PRD) office celebrates its 2nd Anniversary Go back »

2008-06-13 | South China

In June 2006, the European Chamber was firmly placed on the map in Southern China through the establishment of an office in Guangzhou in the Pearl River Delta (PRD). This occasion was marked by an opening ceremony in the presence of European Union Trade Commissioner, Mr. Peter Mandelson, and European Ambassador to China, Mr. Serge Abou.

 


Since its inception, the PRD office has experienced continuous rapid growth in terms of both its members and the number of events. Its strong presence in PRD is confirmed by its two offices, which are located in Guangzhou and Shenzhen. It now has more than 140 corporate members, mainly based in Guangzhou (62%), the rest in Shenzhen (31%).

Several Working Groups (WG) and Forums are now well established and hold regular meetings: Human Resources, Legal, Taxation, Intellectual Property Rights, Environment, Logistics, Small & Medium-size Enterprises and Electronics. All of them are chaired by our members, who are elected by the companies actively involved in each WG.

The PRD office was privileged to host a number of high-profile events with the EU Commissioner on Customs and Taxation. Mr. Kovacs and the EU Commissioner for Consumer Protection, Ms. Kuneva in 2008. The Local Board representing the views of local member companies held various meetings with local authorities throughout the last two years.

To provide a channel of communication between the Chamber, its members and the general business community, the Pearl River Delta Newsletter, "The Voice – PRD Focus", will be launched on 19th June 2008. It will provide an overview on a monthly basis on lobby activities, events and a special section called members spotlight highlighting the profiles of member companies.

Thanks to the support of its dedicated Board members and the Chairs of the WG, the PRD team can provide assistance to its members in many ways: by providing information on new legislations and regulations, facilitating business networking and offering a channel of communication with the Chinese government authorities.