BIENNIAL ASSEMBLY OF THE 44 OFFICIAL SPANISH CHAMBERS ABROAD IN MADRID.

On 5 and 6 July, the 44 Official Spanish Chambers of Commerce Abroad (CAMACOES) met in Madrid to participate in different strategic sessions organised by the State Secretariat of Commerce and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce. The audience with HM the King culminated two days of intense work.

Representing the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in South Africa were its President Marcos Pelegrin and its Secretary General, Manuela Sanchez.

In these sessions, the Secretary of State for Trade, Xiana Méndez, highlighted the good performance of the Spanish foreign sector, with a 23% growth in exports in the first four months of this year and its role as a source of recovery and employment. Méndez underlined the “essential work” of accompanying companies carried out by Chambers of Commerce during the pandemic. The Secretary of State also stressed the importance of public-private collaboration, exemplified by the Spanish Chambers of Commerce abroad, which constitute “a private initiative” that has become “a key instrument of the administration”. The CAMACOES, said Xiana Méndez, are “absolute allies” in each country where they are located, with a “vocation of public service to the country that no one can doubt”.

For his part, José Luis Bonet, President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, pointed out that the Official Spanish Chambers of Commerce abroad are “an essential platform for Spanish companies to go global”, with a particularly relevant role in the current context. The President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce recalled the “commitment of the Chambers to Spain” to “help the necessary internationalisation of companies” and the “crucial moment in which we find ourselves”. According to the President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce “we can choose between adopting two positions; one is to give up and let the current take you, and the other, as we have done so many times, fight against the difficulties and overcome them, with the strength of the entrepreneurs and their attitude”.

During these working sessions, the chambers have had the opportunity to deepen their knowledge of the international financing tools that the Secretary of State for Trade makes available to companies in their internationalisation process, as well as the new aspects of the regulations governing the chambers abroad and the digitalisation plan of CAMACOES launched through the National Plan for Recovery, Transformation and Resilience.

Likewise, the chambers abroad have shared the best practices of the network, explored new ways of collaboration with the Spanish territorial chambers and identified new projects together with the Spanish Chamber of Commerce.