Thursday, July 26 2012

HARRY Alford, president, CEO and co-founder of the National Black Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) of the USA and Board Member of the United States Chamber of Commerce, will deliver a keynote address on Combining African-American, Caribbean and other African Diaspora Resources and Skills to accelerate Economic Devel-opment in Africa and its Diaspora at the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Symposium which will be held at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre on July 31.

The National Black Chamber of Commerce currently has 140 Chapters in the United States as well as chapters in Brazil, Africa and Europe. Since the formation of the NBCC in 1993, the annual revenues of African-American businesses have grown from US$33 billion to US$88 billion, with major credit due to the organisation.

Alford has led large trade missions to Brazil, Ghana, Kenya and various nations in the Caribbean. Recently, he helped establish the French African Diaspora Chamber of Commerce in Paris, France.

Other influential speakers from the United States, Africa, Trinidad and Tobago (TT) and the region will join Alford in presenting business opportunities and strategies, and seeking collaboration.

Organisers of the Symposium, the Emancipation Support Committee of TT, along with Alford, are looking forward to a close association between the NBCC and regional businesses as one of the outcomes of the deliberations. This will increase the potential of all participating businesses to achieve success internationally, beginning with a primary focus on Africa, the Caribbean and the USA.

This year’s one-day symposium will be the 12th edition. Over the past 11 years, participants have benefited from the insights of experts from Caricom, the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery, Gover-nment Ministries, the World Bank, NEPAD, the African Union, ECOWAS, the African Business Roundtable, the US Department of Energy, the Port of Miami, the Caribbean Association of Industry and Commerce, local banks, U.S. private financial institutions, representatives of private sector corporations from the US, Africa and the region.

Many new initiatives at government and private sector levels, particularly in relation to economic engagement between TT and countries on the African continent, have emerged from previous symposia. Initiatives currently underway will be strengthened and new ones will arise within a more developed framework.