Chamber News

Celebrating a successful workshop with Provincial Officers and Entrepreneurs

From Tuesday 14 January through to Friday 17 January Provincial Officers from the Departments of Tourism, Cooperatives, and Industry, along with selected business owners from every province attended a four-day ‘Mentoring Micro Small Medium Enterprises’ workshop at the Grand Hotel in Port Vila. Over 30 attendees were present to hear the words of the Director General of the Ministry of Tourism, Trade, Commerce and Ni-Vanuatu Business as he emphasized the need for Provincial Officers from all departments to work together and assist in the development of the country’s Private Sector. The objective of the workshop was to build capacity that supports the development of business management and technical skills, as well as encourage Ni Vanuatu businesses to develop their ideas and start to diversify their…

Calling for Project Concept Ideas from the Private Sector

The VCCI and VBRC welcomes Expressions of Interest from members of the private sector interested in the opportunity to contribute towards strengthening Vanuatu’s resilience to climate change and providing project concept ideas within climate-relevant thematic areas and sectors. The Mobilizing the Vanuatu Private Sector towards Climate Action project is a project aimed at assisting the private sector to access climate finance. A key deliverable of the project is the setting up a Project Preparation Unit. This unit will soon begin engaging external consultants/firms to work with local private-sector stakeholders to develop bankable climate finance concept notes in key thematic areas and sectors aimed at strengthening the resilience of local businesses and bolstering private-sector action on climate change. Concepts focusing on adaptation will be favourably considered….

Contribute to the Vanuatu Government’s Plastic Strategy

International consultants here working on the Vanuatu Governments’ Plastic Strategy have asked VCCI to share with you an opportunity to feed into the shaping of this important piece of work. Attached here is a snapshot of the Draft Plastics Strategy which includes the five draft Strategic Objectives and 18 Strategic Actions which will act as a road map for the Vanuatu Government to direct effort (including donor funding) to both reduce the loss of plastic into the marine environment and stimulate greener business development opportunities to transition to circular economy friendly products, processes and businesses. The strategy will seek to identify support needed for businesses that make or import replacement products/processes for banned items and also to reduce plastic consumption in general. It will include…

Exciting job opportunity at VCCI!

VCCI is looking for an experienced and dynamic Administrative Officer to join the team in 2020. The purpose of this position is to provide a welcoming, professional and efficient reception service to anyone contacting the Chamber and to provide administration support in a range of areas including communications, events and logistics, petty cash management and record keeping. Click here to download the position job description. To apply please include a cover letter addressing all selection criteria (found in the job description), and an updated curriculum vitae and send to reception@vcci.vu with the subject line ‘Administrative Officer application‘ by the 30th January 2020, or drop your application into the Port Vila office. Any enquiries please call VCCI on 27543

Quality business advice helps Eagle Watch Security in Vanuatu take flight

“The Business Link Pacific Business Health Check was quicker and a lot more user friendly than I’d imagined. It’s good to know where we’re at on a whole”. Our in-country media partner, Savvy Vanuatu caught up with Victor Korikalo, Managing Director of Eagle Watch Security to see how his business was operating since he’d joined the Business Link Pacific program. Life is what happens while you’re making other plans! Victor Korikalo was studying Business, Accounting and Trade at the University of the South Pacific, and was well on his way to forging a career in that sphere, when he assumed extra responsibility for managing security logistics at his part-time job. He soon discovered he had a knack for this line of work and when an…

Calling all consultants – EOI now open until January 31st 2020

The Vanuatu Business Resilience Council of the Vanuatu Chamber of Commerce and Industry is requesting Expressions of Interest (EOI) from individuals and firms to provide short-term consultancy services to assist in the development of mitigation and adaptation concept notes and project proposals. The Mobilizing the Vanuatu Private Sector towards Climate Action project is a project aimed at assisting the private sector to access climate finance. A key deliverable of the project is the setting up a Project Preparation Unit. This unit will soon begin engaging external consultants/firms to work with local private-sector stakeholders to develop bankable climate finance concept notes in key thematic areas and sectors aimed at strengthening the resilience of local businesses and bolstering private-sector action on climate change. Selected consultants/firms will deliver…

Strengthening capacities of Employers’ and Workers’ Organizations on Promotion of Youth Employment in Disaster and Conflict Settings

VCCI General Manager Astrid Boulekone welcomed 24 young entrepreneurial delegates from across the Pacific on Tuesday 12th November at VCCI to talk about the Chamber’s experiences in the immediate aftermath of tropical Cyclone Pam in 2015. The group was here in Port Vila for the ILO supported ‘Strengthening capacities of Employers’ and Workers’ Organizations on Promotion of Youth Employment in Disaster and Conflict Settings’ workshop that ran from 11th – 15th November 2019 at the Grand Hotel. The 2018 World Risk Report places the pacific region as the most at risk to disasters and places five (5) pacific countries among the top 20 that are globally most at risk to disasters. Due to the fragility of the pacific small islands developing states (SIDS), it is…

Enhancing the leadership skills of URA senior staff through management and supervision training

VCCI’s Business Training Officer Irene Titek recently completed a 3 day intensive training with Utilities Regulatory Authority on ‘Leadership and Management Skills’. A total of five managers and two senior officers attended the training from 4th to 6th of November 2019, held at the Chamber’s training room. Aspects of the training were focused on working through and understanding what makes an effective leader, the importance of good people management and what approaches can be applied to staff supervision to bring out the best in teams. Job descriptions for each participant were used as a basis for discussion to discover what the expectations were for each role in relation to leadership and management which assisted in better understanding of the importance the role good leadership plays…

Thinking of exporting to Australia? Come and chat with Pacific Trade Invest (PTI) Australia

Thursday 21st of November 2019

Pacific Trade Invest (PTI) Australia is the lead Trade and Investment Promotion agency in the Pacific supporting businesses from Vanuatu to enter the Australian market. In 2018 PTI Australia assisted 156 businesses resulting in over A$3 million in exports and investment facilitated. As part of mission to Vanuatu, PTI Australia’s General Manager – Export, Jeremy Grennell and Export Services Manager, Jodie Stewart will available to meet one-on-one with businesses interested in exporting to Australia. With extensive experience in packaging, sales, marketing and retail, this is a great opportunity for businesses to get some expert advice. When – Thursday 21 November Where – VCCI conference room Spaces are limited to confirm your time please contact VCCI Reception on 27543 as soon as possible. Thank you.

Council appoints Acting President

At the special meeting of VCCI’s Council on Thursday 7 November 2019, it was unanimously decided that following the resignation of Shaun Gilchrist as Council President, David Russet, current 1st Vice President, would step up into the role of Acting President until the next Council Annual General Meeting (AGM) in March 2020. David will be supported by 2nd Vice President James Roy Matariki, fellow council members and the dedicated staff at the Chamber. David brings with him a wealth of knowledge from his long and extensive involvement with the Chamber, and his lifetime’s work in agriculture, manufacturing and farming in Efate, Santo and Malekula. The VCCI Council acknowledged the major contribution the former President Shaun Gilchrist made to reform, develop and grow the chamber during…

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