Eurochambres is th
Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry The association is one of the largest business representative organisations in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, representing over 20 million businesses in Europe through 45 members (43 national associations of chambers of commerce and industry and 2 transnational chamber organisations) and a European network of 1,700 regional and local chambers. More than 93% of these businesses are small and medium sized enterprises. Chambers’ member businesses employ over 120 million.
Eurochambres' direct members are national associations of chambers of commerce based in 25
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
countries,
European Free Trade Association
The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is a regional trade organization and free trade area consisting of four List of sovereign states and dependent territories in Europe, European states: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerlan ...
countries, and some
Eastern
Eastern may refer to:
Transportation
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
*Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
*Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991
*Eastern Air Li ...
European,
Western Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the whol ...
and
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
countries.
Eurochambres’ vision is an integrated, globally competitive Europe, where businesses can prosper and drive socio-economic progress. Chambers have an active role to play in the pursuit of this vision. Reflecting this, Eurochambres strives to represent Chambers of Commerce and Industry and their member companies towards the EU institutions, to identify relevant joint activities and capacity building across the European chamber network.
History
Eurochambres was founded 28 February 1958 as the "Conférence Permanente des Chambres de Commerce et d’Industrie de la
CEE" by six members with the mission to promote the views of Chamber organisations on the unification of national legislation at the European level and to form opinions regarding the modifications to be made to commercial legislation. An important objective of the Conférence was also to bring closer competences in order to provide an example of the
European cooperation of the highest quality level. The Conférence Permanente held its first assembly in
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
on 28 February 1958. Initial members were national association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry from
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
,
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
and
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. The year 1961 saw the creation of the first technical committees and 4 new members joined. A permanent Secretariat was created in 1977 (before the various countries assumed the role in turns).
Eurochambres, the Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry was registered as an international
non-profit organisation
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
in Belgium (
AISBL
Laws regulating nonprofit organizations, nonprofit corporations, non-governmental organizations, and voluntary associations vary in different jurisdictions.
Australia
In Australia, nonprofit organizations include trade unions, charitable entities ...
- Association internationale à but non lucratif) in 1977. The network expanded progressively to 43 national associations plus 2 transnational organisations of Chambers from an enlarged Europe.
One of Eurochambres’ most prominent activities is th
European Parliament of Enterprises which is organised in coordination with the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
. The first edition took place in 2008 and gathered some 774 European businesses of all sizes and from all sectors in the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
hemicycle in Brussels. Further editions of the event were also organised in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018.
Current leadership
''Information from official website.''
* Luc Frieden (Finance minister of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and current president of th
Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce - President. Elected in October 2021.
* Vladimir Dlouhy (President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Czech Republic) - Deputy President
* Ian Talbot (CEO of Chambers Ireland) - Deputy President
* Stephan Müchler (President of the Chamber of Czech Republic) - Deputy President
* Marta Schultz (Vice President, Austrian Federal Economic Chamber) - Vice President
*Pierre Goguet (President of CCI France) - Vice President
* Wolfgang Grenke (Member of the Board of the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce – DIHK) - Vice President
*Michl Ebner (President of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Crafts and Agriculture of Bolzano, Italy) - Vice President
*Marek Kloczko (Vice President and Director General of the Polish Chamber of Commerce) - Vice President
* Jose Luis Bonet Ferrer (President of Spanish Chamber of Commerce) - Vice President
* Ben Butters -
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
Members
Currently Eurochambres has 45 members, 43 of them being national chambers and 2 transnational chambers:
Its General Secretariat office is based in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, Belgium.
See also
*
Business association
*
British Chambers of Commerce
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
*
Lobbying
In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agency, regulatory agencie ...
*
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
*
Trade group
A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific Industry (economics), industry. An industry tra ...
*
Trade union
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
*
United States Chamber of Commerce
The United States Chamber of Commerce (USCC) is the largest lobbying group in the United States, representing over three million businesses and organizations. The group was founded in April 1912 out of local chambers of commerce at the urging ...
External links
Non-profit organisations based in Belgium
Cross-European advocacy groups
Pan-European trade and professional organizations
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