BBC featured in Belgian Supplement to Khaleej Times
BBC was featured with an article in the Belgium Supplement of the Khaleej Times.
Belgium: Belgium Business Council
Looking forward to a promising future
Among the many business councils in the UAE, the Belgium Business Council (BBC) is comparatively new. After several attempts since 2008, BBC was officially launched in 2011.
“With about 2000 Belgians in the UAE, it is quite extraordinary that it took so long to start BBC. We did have several social activities but probably felt the need for a business networking platform only recently,” says Willem Vander Meersch, President of the BBC and Director Business Development at Tebodin Middle East Ltd.
“With the support of the Belgian Embassy our business council creates a platform where business people and professionals with ties to Belgium get the opportunity to meet each other and share interests. We organise 4 to 6 quality events a year that have been quite successful up till now with a participation of 60+ people on most venues.” explains Wim Bonjean, Vice President of BBC who works as the General Manager of BUT ‘”
BBC has set up a website for those interested to register with the BBC and is currently in the process of revamping it to make it more user oriented and beneficial to members. Around 160 people are already registered and the number seems to be growing steadily.
“The number is not bad for the council of a small country like Belgium. We have been officially registered since Summer 2011 and we are ready to take BBC seriously forward with paid membership, written statutes, a revamped website www.bbc-uae.org with all data regularly updated and a calendar of networking events,” informs Bonjean.
If one is a professional or a business person and has ties to Belgian or is working for a Belgian company, then one is eligible to become a member in BBC, which has elected a new committee of office bearers and is set to move forward according to its ratified bylaws and statutes. The membership is growing and promises to make the BBC a viable platform for Belgian business people and professionals.
Both Vander Meersch and Bonjean are optimistic about the future of BBC and increasing its membership. Leading Belgian companies have already offered to sponsor or partner with the BBC for different events as well as the website. With the economy of Dubai on a growth path, they expect more Belgian businesses and professionals to come to Dubai and the region. And that will definitely swell the membership numbers!
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