Looking Back at a Successful Year - The Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Whilst writing the Annual Report for the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI) I was struck by the number of different areas the Chamber has been involved in on island in 2008.  

Below is an extract from the Annual Report:

The Chamber's Active Year

At Home...

2008, the year that The Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI) was proud to have been selected to join the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States' (OECS) Private Sector Forum, was characterised by continued activity on island, designed to assist the Anguillian business community.

The goal of the OECS Private Sector Forum is to be a development-networking forum, which researches, identifies resources and exchanges ideas about the role of private enterprise in an attempt to enhance economic competitiveness.  'Being selected to join the Forum is an important achievement for the Chamber of Commerce,' said a delighted Calvin Bartlett, ACOCI Executive Director, at the time. 

In addition to this the Chamber has been busy in other areas.

Officials from UK Customs and Excise and the Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council wee on Anguilla to review Customs and Excise Operation on Anguilla.  They specifically asked to speak to the Chamber as part of their review.

Danny Pedley, Operations Team Leader, when asked why the team particularly wanted to speak to the Chamber of Commerce, explained, 'Over the years the Customs business has changed dramatically in the way it approaches how it delivers the service to the public.  At one time customer service tended to operate autonomously and without reference to its main customer base, which was trade.  That thinking has moved on, certainly in the last ten years, to the point now where effective dialogue between Customs and the Commercial Sector is an integral part of the way customs internationally does its business. If Customs aren't sensitised to the needs of the trade they cannot get their delivery systems working perfectly.

'We are here as a Review Team looking at, and working with, the Customs and Management in Anguilla, as it works through a transition process which includes changes in management, changes in structure and also, the introduction of some automated systems.  Part of our review is about looking at who are the key stakeholders that must be consulted, so that when customs worked through its transition process it's able to do so and come out at the other end as en effective organisation which complements the working of trade.'

ACOCI's first information meeting took place in May.  Members turned out to hear speakers outlining how the National Health Fund would affect them and to hear about the emergency medical transportation service offered by MASA (Medical Air Services Association).

Ms Gercheal Richardson-Gumbs outlined a National Health Fund which aimed to benefit all equitably in providing health care for life.  All family members would be covered for one small contribution.  'The object of the national health fund,' she said, 'is ensuring that all Anguillians and residents have access to good quality health care when they need it and in an equitable manner.'

Aaron W Mitchell, Director of Eastern Regional MASA outlined the services his company could provide.  He pointed out that since 1974, when MASA invented the industry, the company had grown to 12 international offices and 800,000 members worldwide.  In the last year MASA had facilitated 600 medical evacuations in the Caribbean. 'When something happens and someone needs to be flown out, we don't panic, it is something we do every day,' he said.

In July the Chamber hosted a General Meeting and Forum.  Members of the public were able to ask panel members, department heads of public services, questions on areas of concern.  This well attended meeting produced questions on such topics as sand mining, the preservation of older homes, beach access, the issue of stray or dead animals on the roads, condoms on the beaches, gastroenteritis among the population, rubbish burning, arming of the police, rudeness of immigration staff and the costs of rental property.  

ACOCI hosted a media luncheon in October to inform the public of its activities throughout the year and to highlight the forthcoming Caribbean Home Expo and the Business After Hours Initiative at La Sirena hotel.  This event also spotlighted the fact that ACOCI had facilitated Anguillian businesses to travel, all expenses paid, to attend the 11th Annual Americas Food and Beverages Show.  

The Business After Hours initiative, a networking event designed to provide Chamber members with business to business opportunities, featured a presentation by Niguel Streete, Director of Anguilla's Financial Services Commission.  He spoke on the Financial Action Task Force, combating money laundering, terrorist financing and managing risks.

ACOCI, with the Anguilla Hotel and Tourist Association, in the first collaboration of its kind, hosted a Renewable Energy Forum in December. Members of the public were invited to hear about the ever-growing problem of energy and proposed solutions for Anguilla, from a panel of three members of the Energy Committee.   

As you can see, the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry was involved in a varied spread of activities on behalf of the business community.  With the global financial problems looking to worsen in 2009, it remains to be seen how the Chamber will fare in the coming year. The workshops on Business Planning by Morton Patterson, Business Consultant, which take place today at the Paradise Cove hotel give some indication of the way that the Chamber plans to continue to assist Anguilla's businesses through this most difficult of times.  It will be interesting to read of the Chamber's activities this time next year.

A Charming Gentleman - Morton Patterson

Sick or not, writing has to go on.  

A short time ago I was asked to write the Annual Report for the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI), as I have done in previous years. This year though, I am in the UK and not in the Caribbean, so it has been a little more challenging to get all the information, write everything up, get it laid out and for me to edit and proof read it in time for the AGM tomorrow.  Suffice to say that it has meant some long hours to get it all together in time. Thankfully Skype, that wonderful VOIP system that allows free calls between computer users, was up and running and I was able to talk to the ACOCI Graphic Designer, Valerie Zaharia, at length and work with her in real time.  

What is different this year is that I was able to meet and interview the keynote speaker, Morton Patterson, (of Morton Patterson and Associates, www.mortonpatterson.com)  in London before he left for Anguilla.  He and I met, having braved the English chill, at the Royal Festival Hall.  

Morton is a business coach, keynote speaker and facilitator specialising in working with business owners, managing directors and senior management who feel overwhelmed, need someone to help them clarify their business vision and plan a way forward.  He works with clients who are submitting major tenders for developments across East London, the Thames Gateway and the 2012 Olympic Games.  He is also a charming gentleman, who genuinely wishes to use his considerable skills to assist business people.   

The resulting article was published in The Anguillian on 23 January 2009.  To read it click here.

Whilst on island Morton will be running two workshops, 'Goal Setting and Business Planning' on Thursday 29 January 2009.  These have been sponsored by the OECS.

The AGM is tomorrow, Wednesday 28 January 2009, at the Overlook Restaurant between 12.30 and 2.30 pm.  For more information call the Chamber on 497 2839.

Looking Back... Looking Forward...

It's been a funny old week.

I seem to have spent much of it wet and 60 feet, or more, deep. I was working on my deep diver and night diver certifications and these meant that I went off exploring and doing underwater drills to pass the qualifications. Normal life was put on hold for a while.

Night diving is not a passion of mine. I was glad of the almost full moon, which light up the water and kept me sane. I love to see the wonderful colours a torch can bring out in marine life but it is what you cannot see beyond the beam that I worry about.

On Thursday I finished the last dive and so qualified not just as a Deep Diver and a Night Diver but as a Master Scuba Diver too. To say I am chuffed is an understatement! I am delighted.

My long suffering instructor, Rob, is, I think, relieved to have got me through it. He freely admits, and I agree with him, that he did not think I would do it. I know that if he had let go of my hand on the first dive I would not have taken a second. I was frightened, literally out of my depth and had bitten off more than I could chew.

I hate things to beat me so I came back, finished the course and was hooked. Since those early days I have taken several more courses and readers of this blog will have suffered with me through the gruelling Rescue Diver course I completed a couple of months ago.

So now I am taking a rest from diving for a day or so and am catching up with other things.

Diving does not go away though. My husband, Joe and our friend, Sheryl, took their Advanced Diver Certification and Sheryl's other half, Michael, and I took a boat ride out to watch their torch lights moving about on the wreck of the Cathley H for their final, qualifying night dive. For me this was a novelty as I am usually the one under the water looking up, not the one out of the water, looking down! They both passed the dive and so, are now Advanced Divers. I could not be more proud of them.

At the beginning of the week I heard I had beaten off over fifty other writers to land a regular commission as a Travel Writer and Researcher, writing for an internet company which produces travel guides for cruiseship passengers. I was quite pleased with myself and look forward to the new work with enthusiasm.

I met the Anguilla Community Band the week before last and was charmed by their commitment to representing the island at functions large and small. My article on the band was published on July 18th in The Anguillian (www.anguillian.com) and I hope that there are readers out there who can assist them. They exist without regular sponsorship and it is goodwill and sheer determination that keeps them going. At present they need instruments, so if anyone has any old brass, woodwind or indeed, any instrument that they do not need, then please contact me and I will put you in touch with the band director, Allan Coppin.

The Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI) is not letting me go easily. Despite my having undertaken my last interview for ACOCI Connection, I have been asked to retain my editorial role with the publication. This is good news as this has been a labour of love for a long time now. Wherever I end up in the world the miracle of modern technology will mean I can still stay in touch.

I received a message out of the blue this morning from a new Indian magazine whose editor has seen one of my yachting articles and wants me to write more such pieces for his publication. I have replied and asked for details but this seems like a good start to a new week.

So, what will this new week hold? I have several articles 'on the go' and must finish these this week, so I think I will be largely office based. Next week we are being packed up for the Big Move, so I have to think about what I will need over the next few weeks and make sure these items do not get accidently put into packing cases. It would be just my luck to have packed my card reader, dictaphone or the mains leads for the laptop!

More of this in future blogs.

The Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Today I undertook my last interview for the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI). I must admit, when I take a moment to think about it, I am going to miss the Chamber.

I first became involved with ACOCI in December 2006, when I was approached by a volunteer with the Chamber asking if I would be interested in writing for, taking photographs and editing a new publication that the Chamber wished to bring out. ACOCI had had a one page newsletter up until this point and wished to make a proper magazine out of the production. I was to be the one to take the project forward.

ACOCI is a small Chamber. It has less than 100 supporting members and so money is always tight. Nevertheless, Executive Director, Calvin Bartlett, had big ideas. He and I, and the talented layout professional, Valerie Zaharia, got together and decided just what we would do and how we would go about it.

Our first effort was a four page publication in colour, printed on cheap, thin paper but it was substantially more rewarding for ACOCI members than its flimsy predecessor. It covered the AGM and, for the first time, offered members the chance to interact with each other via the newsletter. From here we moved on to targeting individual companies and looking at why they joined the Chamber and what benefits they got out of it. Little by little the word spread. Soon we were up to 8 pages in quality paper and struggling to contain all we wanted to report on within it. Some editions have overspilled into flyers inside the main edition. We started to attract advertising and, although this is something that the newsletter needs to work on in the future, it started to generate income towards paying for itself. We now have business people contacting the Chamber and asking to be interviewed for the magazine. From a very small beginning a thriving magazine has been born.

It will be hard to leave my baby behind. As all parents know, letting go is difficult. I am not sure if it will be in good hands when I leave the island at the beginning of September. It may be that I will retain some of my writing and editing duties purely because there is no one else on the island willing to take it on. The wonders of modern technology mean that email makes my working for the Anguilla Chamber a viable option, even from England.

Today though, as I chatted with the Director of the Financial Services Commission for the next edition, I reflected that this would be my last interview. Over time, I have talked to many local business people, many of whom have gone on to become friends. This is, after all, a small island. I will miss this opportunity to get to know people in this manner.

I will be photographing the Anguilla Carnival for the newsletter as I did last year. This should be my final official act as photographer and will lead to the my final editing of my final edition. A sober thought.

Penny Wins Outstanding Achievement Award!

At the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry Limited Annual General Meeting on Thursday 31 January 2008, I was presented with an Award for Outstanding Achievement for writing and editing the Chamber's publication, ACOCI Connection. I was very happy to receive the award and thank ACOCI very much for the honour. The photo shows me with ACOCI President, John Benjamin.

Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry Awards Certificates for Best Christmas Decorations

The Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI) sent out Undercover Photographers over the Christmas Period to capture images of the decorations put up by businesses on the island.

All the images have been published in the January edition of ACOCI Connection, the Chamber's bi-monthly newsletter. What is clear is that the island looked really good this year!

ACOCI judged the decorations in three categories:

The National Bank of Anguilla won the Award for Best Outside Decorations.
Mills Baby World won the Award for Best Window Display.
Caribbean Commercial Bank won the Award for Best Christmas Tree.

Certificates were presented to a representative of each business by Calvin Bartlett, Executive Director of the Chamber and Valerie Zaharia, Volunteer.

The Last Few Weeks

Well it has been a while since I last wrote on this blog! I had not realised it was so long. How time flies.

What have I been up to? You may well ask! Well, I will tell you. I hope you are sitting comfortably as this may take a while.

I went to Miami with Joe and, while he was busy with his course and conference, I was busy with my articles (see previous blog). You will be pleased to know that I got them all completed in time. It just goes to show that if you want to do something badly enough, you will no matter what there is in the way! Of course it helps if you have a wifi enabled laptop!

I took two days out to take my Underwater Digital Photography Course. I took it with South Beach Divers and had great fun. The course was not very intensive, which I was surprised about to tell the truth. I thought that there would be more theory than there was. I had to read the usual manual and then take photos.

My instructor, the irrepressible Anthony Djuren is a Master Scuba Diver Trainer and Professional Concert Photographer. His life seems to be a constant round of travelling, photoshoots and diving - fantastic! He has lived just about everywhere and dived on all the major sites of the world. He is currently planning a 'Road' movie with some of his old army buddies across the US. His life now is a far cry from his original calling as an advertising executive. He woke up one morning and explained to his wife that he was going to drop out and take up professional scuba diving. She was surprised!

Anthony took me to Key Largo. For me this was a real adventure as I have never been out of Miami when we have visited Florida.

The dive operation there is very commercial and I felt a little as if I was being processed in a factory. The boats are huge and there are a lot of people on each one. I had some things to adjust to. I had never left a boat using the 'Giant Stride' method of water entry. I usually roll backwards off the side of the boat. I was a bit concerned that I might end up landing face first in the water and knocking my nose into the back of my head! Anthony just laughed! 'Keep your head up and look ahead as you walk off the edge' he advised and, being a good student, I followed his advice and thus still have a nose in the right place.

Diving on Fire Coral Alley, so called because it is literally ablaze with the stinging coral you give much respect to, I met 600lb Cooper, the Grouper. As you can see from the photo above, he was a gentle giant and seemed quite used to divers. Just as well, as there were way too many of us. This is commercial diving on a scale I have not been used to before. I suppose I have been sheltered, diving here on little Anguilla. The dive sites here are lovely and unspoilt. The biggest group of divers a site gets is about 8 at once, not 80++ as in Key Largo. That the sites are being spoilt was evident at our second site, Hole in the Wall, which was nice enough but wherever you went you bumped into other divers. Too many people, some sea life. Shame.

On this trip I made the acquaintance of Frankie, the Bronx policeman. Frankie, if you are reading this, Hello! He and I chatted on the long drive to and from Miami and I learnt all about his life as a cop. I would love to do an in-depth interview with this gentleman as he was interesting to talk to. I hope that all goes well for him, as he is contemplating his future with the police force.

Back in Miami Anthony took me to the Princess Brittany wreck off Miami, which is at 87 feet. Here there were lots of really big Barracuda. Anthony got me to enter the wreck as there are a couple of places where divers can swim through. I am not good in enclosed spaces and for me this was a bit of an ordeal. I was taking pictures all the while and hoping that they would come out ok. Visibility was not wonderful so the resulting photos were not as good as I had hoped.

My final, qualifying dive was to The Pipes. These were sewer pipes which were surplus to requirements and so were dumped to be colonated by sea life. Again, way too many divers but we had some fun swimming about, and through, them. Anthony even found a resting shark for me which was excellent to see.

So, now I am a PADI Underwater Photographer. Great!

To all the staff at South Beach Divers, many thanks for your help and support and to Anthony, thanks for the fun too! I have never taken a qualification and had such fun doing it! Thanks for passing me too!!!! http://www.southbeachdivers.com/

Joe and I were going to dive together at the weekend but the weather changed and that was the end of that. Shame. Joe was really looking forward to some fun after his course and conference, which after all, were the reasons we were in Miami.

He flew home to Anguilla and I flew on to London to see my parents.

My father's health has been a bit of a worry for a while and I wanted to see for myself how he was. Not good is the short answer. I spent a week at home and I am glad I went. My mother was struggling too and I hope I managed to give them both a bit of help and support while I was home.

Back on Anguilla again and it was time to get the December edition of ACOCI Connection ready for publication. There is just so much going on in the Chamber of Commerce that it has taken a bit of effort to keep up with it all! The Chamber and Cable and Wireless hosted the first Business After Hours event which went very well and attendance was good. This was a chance for local businesses to meet over a glass of wine, swap business cards and learn a little about each other's products and services. Cable and Wireless made various presentations and the whole event was broadcast live on local radio. I covered the event for the magazine and took some photos for The Anguillian of the bizarrely named band, The Energetic Superfly String Band, who were very good and got everyone's feet tapping.

The Chamber held its Christmas Fayre on 8th December and I spent 10 hours on duty with my camera and dictaphone. Father Christmas opened the event and, in an exclusive interview, told me that the reindeer were suffering from the heat and so were not present and were resting in the cool shelter of a local stable. Many local children breathed a sigh of relief to hear that the reindeer were ok and they were universally happy to see Santa!

The Pepper Stepper Skipping Troup put on a display of agility with a skipping rope the like of which this writer has never witnessed before. As you can see from the photos, they were magic indeed.

A fashion show completed the days events, which had also included many local businesses showcasing their wares on a very blustery and intermittently wet day.

ACOCI Connection was put to bed at the end of last week after our layout lady, Valerie, did a sterling job in making it look good. Valerie has such expertise and it is a real pleasure to work with her. If you are reading this Valerie, I wish to say a public thank you for making the production look so professional. The Board of Directors of the Chamber are very happy with the production, which makes all the work worth while.

In the meantime, The Insider is nearly at the printers. This is HM Prison Anguilla's first publication and the team involved, all prison staff except for yours truly, have worked very hard to bring it together. Some last minute hitches have been encountered, which have delayed publication, but in January it will hit the streets and we can sit back and listen to the feedback. This will be useful for the next edition, due out in the summer.

I was stunned to find that I had passed my last Open University course (see previous angst-ridden entry on the OU!) and so picked up my degree at long last. My family have been congratulatory and Joe bought me the most gorgeous pair of earrings to celebrate. I will be travelling back to England to pick up the award in April. I am an eternal student and am already looking at other courses.

Ok I think that is as much as most readers will be able to stand to read in one sitting!

I will try not to leave it so long between postings next time.

The photos show Cooper, the Grouper, Anthony peering through a port hole on the wreck of the Princess Brittany, The Pepper Steppers in action and Father Christmas opening the Chamber of Commerce Christmas Fayre.

The Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry Triumphs!

I am the Editor, Writer and Photographer for the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI) Newsletter. This week I took the camera along to a Celebratory Networking Meeting at the lovely Zurra restaurant on the new golf course in the West End of the island.

Celebratory because the Chamber has just won a major award, Best Project from a Chamber in a Developing Country, and was placed as a finalist for a second award, Best Membership Recruitment Project, at the Fifth World Chambers Competition in Turkey. This competition is held every two years by the World Chambers Federation (WCF) and, according to 'Commerce International', it is the only global awards programme to recognise innovative projects undertaken by Chambers of Commerce and Industry from all over the world. The WCF’s mission ‘is to encourage Chamber excellence and dynamism while fostering information exchange and business development’.

The Anguillian Business Community has a well known individualistic attitude. The Chamber has always faced challenges in recruiting members and showing its value to the economic development of Anguilla. Slowly the Chamber has grown, from its inception in the late 1970’s to the point in 2006 when it boasted 60 supporting members. In 2007 the Chamber formed a private-public partnership with the Government of Anguilla resulting in the incorporation of all government registered businesses as standard members of the Chamber of Commerce. As a result of the agreement, membership increased to 1,100. A proportion of the Business License fees that registered businesses pay to the Government is now paid to the Chamber. The Chamber is proud of this agreement which is seen as a unique working relationship between the Public and Private Sector.

This idea is original and innovative and has been recognised by the Award of Best Project from a Chamber in a Developing Country. This award is a new category, added for the 2007 Competition, and recognises an exceptional project that demonstrates achievement and success in a challenging business environment. The Chamber was also a Finalist in another category, Best Membership Recruitment Project.

This places the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the Top 21 Most Innovative Chambers of Commerce and Industry in the World. This achievement has created new opportunities for the Chamber to explore new niche markets, establish new partnerships and launch new initiatives to support small and medium businesses which will benefit the local economy. This is a fantastic achievement of which its members should be proud.

The Anguillian Chief Minister and Finance Minister were invited to join Chamber members in a celebration of the awards on Tuesday 24 July. It was disappointing when they did not turn up. Indeed attendance at the celebration was generally low. It would seem that everyone outside of Anguilla recognises the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s value, but Anguillians are still less enamoured. It will take much more than the winning of a Major International Award to break into the hearts of many Anguillians.

Those who came to the meeting were addressed by the Chamber’s President, John Benjamin, who was elated by the award, and by Calvin Bartlett, the Executive Director, who thanked the sponsors who enabled the journey to Turkey to be undertaken, the volunteers who make the Chamber tick and all those who made winning the award possible. Members of the local Press and Television Company were present to record the event for a wider audience and for posterity. All attendees enjoyed being wined and dined expertly by Zurra staff and much networking in a friendly atmosphere went on.

The photgraph shows Calvin Bartlett, Executive Director of the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry, with the Winner's Plaque for Best Project from a Chamber in a Developing Country.