WTC HAVANA & CUBAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE CELEBRATE

WTC Havana was part of the celebrations held for the 55th Anniversary of the Chamber of Commerce of the Republic of Cuba, 55 years of permanent support for the strengthening of the business sector and commitment to the socio-economic development of the country. On this occasion we would like to highlight the holding of the General Assembly of Associates of 2018.

The framework was favorable to publicize the main results that the Chamber, made the balance of the services offered in the year 2017 and its impact on the work of these companies. This event was attended by the Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Rodrigo Malmierca Díaz, and Ramón Labañino Salazar, Hero of the Republic of Cuba and Vice President of the ANEC.

The main topics debated were:

• In 2017, a record number of new members was reached, which doubled the 2016 enrollment. At the end of the year we had 776 members.
• It continues to intensify a group of actions to strengthen the attention to our associates, among which the visits to companies throughout the country stand out.
•26 training actions were developed In the international arena, 30 business forums were organized and 211 visits were received from 61 countries, with delegations from China, Japan, Mexico, Spain, Russia, Germany and Trinidad and Tobago.
• The business forums served as a space to promote among foreign entrepreneurs the legal framework of foreign investment and the projects that Cuba offers, the incentives of the Special Mariel Development Zone as well as the guidelines for doing business, including rules and procedures.
• The three external missions that were foreseen in the Cameral Plan were completed: Trinidad Tobago, Mexico and France.
• The participation of Cuban companies in 16 missions to different countries was organized: Canada, Venezuela, Russia, Barbados, Jamaica, United Kingdom, Spain, among others.
• With the purpose of strengthening and diversifying institutional relations, 16 agreements were signed, standing out with the Caribbean region.
• This year was characterized by a strong interaction with the international organizations of which we are members: the International Fair of America Association (AFIDA), Global Standart International (GS1), the International Chamber of Commerce and the World Trade Center Association.
• In 2017, the Chamber worked on the organization of Cuban participation in 11 fairs, including 5 general, 5 specialized and an International Exhibition, EXPO ASTANA.
• The thirty-fifth edition of the International Fair of Havana, maintained as a central theme foreign investment and had exhibitors and visitors from more than 70 countries. There is a sustained increase in quantity and quality of the actions organized by the Cuban Organizations and Companies within the framework of FIHAV, which adds value to our main commercial exchange.
• The Chamber continued to participate in the Digital Origin Certification Working Group and participated in the Virtual Forum of the ALADI Technical Group.

A deep and sincere thanks was expressed from the Chamber to the associates and, in a special way, to the 15 founding associates who have been with us for 55 years, because they were and continue to be protagonists of the economic development process of our country.