Chamber News

Free Financial Literacy for Businesses

It is estimated that small private businesses provide up to 75% of the employment in Vanuatu and often the struggle to maintain and grow these businesses is real. However, with all of the additional support now on offer from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) that is changing – and fast. Their new suite of business support services includes entry level financial literacy workshops that are the result of a partnership between VCCI and ANZ Vanuatu. These workshops were piloted in 2020 and are on offer to business license holders each quarter during 2021, and they are free to all business owners. The pilot workshops were held in Port Vila town as well as Mele Village. The follow up which was conducted to observe…

Oxfam Unblocked Cash Transfer Program Now Extending to Shefa

With the successful implementation of the Oxfam Unblocked Cash Transfer program in Sanma and Tafea provinces, Oxfam is now focusing on rolling out implementation for Shefa Province. With the support of Oxfam’s partners including the Vanuatu Society of People Living with Disability (VSPD) and the Vanuatu Business Resilience Council (VBRC), as well as Save the Children, Vanuatu Red Cross and Vanuatu Christian Council are working hand in hand to extend this program to Efate and off shore islands has now begun. This program provides assistance to those most in need as a result of the combined effects of COVID, volcanic ashfall (in Tafea) and TC Harold and the resulting impact people’s livelihoods which created hardship in many areas of Vanuatu. For the Shefa program, given…

Want staff who are more appropriately skilled to work in your industry?

Cut down your time training new staff by strengthening the skills they are learning at our national training institutes. VQA needs your industry knowledge. The Vanuatu Qualifications Authority is working with VCCI to find the best private sector individuals to review subjects and skills taught in our national training and vocational education centres so that the quality of the training improves and the graduates are better able to hit the ground running in the workplaces. The way that it currently works is that when a higher education facility or training institution wishes to teach any course that provides a qualification, the modules taught need to be approved by the Vanuatu Qualifications Board. The first step is for every unit of competency that makes up this…

Developing Businesswomen’s Leadership & Business Management Skills

The new Phoenix Project delivered by Vanuatu Chamber of Commerce (VCCI) and Vanuatu Business Resilience Council (VBRC) focuses on accelerating economic recovery by providing targeted support to local women business owners who in turn will lead the recovery of their communities. What’s unique about this project is that it’s both focused on business skills and leadership. The participating women business owners will be given the support to endure the current period of economic downturn and targeted business skills to strengthen their business in the capital city of Port Vila. The project will deliver a mix of life coaching sessions, business skills training and network development programs, and then when clients have developed an appropriate business plan will provide cash grants that are to be invested…

CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST – Port Vila Retail Suppliers

Background The impacts of COVID-19 restrictions in Vanuatu, spanning from March 2020 until today has resulted in a significant reduction in income and livelihoods across Vanuatu, particularly amongst households with pre-existing vulnerabilities. In order to address the needs of our people Oxfam in Vanuatu is deploying a large-scale cash transfer response to assist those in most need. Oxfam is implementing their proven approach for humanitarian response/emergency recovery here in Vanuatu – called an Unblocked Cash response. This has started in SANMA and TAFEA and is about to start in selected areas of SHEFA. What is Unblocked Cash? This solution focuses on the distribution of support via goods and services to those most vulnerable as a result of the COVID-19 crises. Rather than receiving funds in…

Call for Expressions of Interest (EOI) for HACCP Certification support for Shefa based businesses

Following the completion of HACCP training in Efate and Santo for potential exporters of food & beverage products, the VCCI Business Support Centre is now offering the necessary consulting support to achieve HACCP certification / Folem HACCP trening long Efate mo Santo blong potensel expot blong ol prodak blong kakai mo drink, VCCI bisnis sapot centa hemi stap ofarem consalting sapot blong achivim HACCP setifiket. This includes the services of Dion Palu, an ISO/HACCP/Organic Auditor, for up to a period of 6 months, to prepare, establish and implement a customised HACCP plan. This opportunity will be offered to 6 businesses initially to reach the “audit ready” stage. One-on-one consulting involves; A gap analysis of your business against the HACCP standard Creating an action plan with…

Government and Business Forum Outcomes Update

It has been almost 2 months since VCCI facilitated the National Government and Business Forum in Port Vila. We would like to update you on the outcomes of the forum, and fill you in on activities that were sparked by the forum and its recommendations. The key objective of the forum was to strengthen the private sectors engagement with the Government, and to try and increase coordination between us. This update showcases progress about this collaborative approach. National Government and Business and Government and Private Sector Working Forum, Wednesday 30 September to Thursday 1 October 2020 The 2-day forum, facilitated by independent representative Anna Naupa, focused on the coming together of Government and businesses to look into the future of the country’s economy and how…

Phoenix Prokram – Sapot mo Divelopmen blong ol Woman Bisnis Owna

Phoenix prokram hemi fokas blo leftemap ekonomik rikavari tru long sapot we bae emi givim long ol woman we oli gat ol smol bisnis, tru long olgeta nao bai oli save lidim ekonomik rikavari long wanwan komuniti blong olgeta. Ol woman bisnis ona we bai oli tek pat long prokram ya bambae lanem ol tul we bae save helpem olgeta lo taem naia we ekonomi blong yumi emi stap ko daon, mo tu blong sapotem olgeta long prokram ya blong save statem bisnis blong long Port Vila taon. Projek bae mekem yu tekpat long sesen blong helpem yu long laef, lanem bisnis skills mo pat long netwok developmen prokrams, lidasip trening mo kasem sam kash krant wea hemi blong bildimup bisnis blong yu. Wok ya…

New Approaches to Small Business Support

When we think about our life experiences, we realise that one thing we all have in common is that we started off our journeys as small babies dependent on others, and, over time, with the right support, we have become productive adults. Businesses mostly share similar experience. Even large companies like Ford have a photo of their first car, whilst McDonalds started with one hamburger restaurant. Considered in this light, we recognise that businesses develop and grow from humble beginnings. Small businesses are like seeds. If they are well planted and nourished, they can grow into something bigger and when we see them for their potential, we see many opportunities. Perhaps more interestingly, according to the World Trade Organization, small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) represent over 90% of businesses,…

Calling Santo based businesses, are you wanting to be able to export your product? Sign up now for our 2 Day ‘Principles and Application of HACCP’ Training Course!

Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) is an internationally recognized method of identifying and managing food safety related risk and is a necessary accreditation you must have to export your products from Vanuatu. HACCP can be applied where any food is produced, handled, transported or stored. If you work with food, HACCP can be applied to help make sure food is safe to eat. Principles of HACCP are used to identify, assess, control and monitor food safety hazards that may occur in your food business. If the steps and requirements of HACCP are not correctly implemented, there can be significant impacts on both your customers and your business. These can include product recall, injury, illness, customer complaints, market failure and even litigation. The Principles and…

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