HDCC, MS celebrate fifth anniversary

Today marks the fifth anniversary of the successful partnership between the Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce (HDCC) and Manchester Solutions (MS), part of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, which won the World Chamber Competition for the Best Networking Project in 2009 at the sixth World Chamber Congress.

The partnership emerged in response to the tsunami which hit the Hambantota District particularly severely and left huge devastation in its wake. The GMCC, the largest in the United Kingdom, and its service delivery company, MS subsequently made the decision to invest in a program to support economic redevelopment in the area.

HDCC was approached since it is a significant and well-respected organization regionally and nationally in Sri Lanka and is regarded as one of the most advanced and developed District Chambers in the country.

For five years the two Chambers have been working closely on a series of development projects associated with both the development of the Hambantota District as well as of HDCC itself.

What started as an initial three-year partnership agreement, has now been extended by two further three-year agreements, with current plans operating till 2011. The initial agreement was signed in the expectation that, should the partnership prove mutually beneficial and successful in its aims, then the agreement would continue beyond this three-year timeframe. This extension reflects the two Chambers' commitment and success.

Three primary objectives were decided upon in 2005 which centred on working together to promote long-term economic re-development in the Hambantota District, supporting the organizational development and success of HDCC, and developing mutual links between the two Chambers and their members. Substantial progress has been made since then through the commitment of staff time and expertise. HDCC and MS have worked closely on a number of development projects: an Economic Development Strategy (aimed at maximizing the local benefit arising from the current new developments in the Hambantota District such as the international airport, deep-sea port, and the international cricket stadium), tourism development, the careers service centre development, and within HDCC the development of human resource systems and staff development programs, IT resources, systems and infrastructure, membership and membership services, and financial management capacity and systems.

The project has been especially innovative since not only has it formed the first major Chamber-to-Chamber partnership for both Chambers, but it has identified and developed a new model for progressing international development partnerships.

It has involved a long-term commitment to sharing expertise and resource rather than just a one-off financial contribution. Financial investment has nevertheless included: the purchasing of IT hardware and software to increase HDCC's capacity, funding some salaries and staff development programs (for example Partnership Development Manager Krishanthi Weerasinghe is currently working towards her MBA from the Open University with the support of Manchester Solutions), and enabling representatives from Hambantota's tourist sector to attend the London International World Travel Market event which also resulted in increased international recognition for HDCC.

Regular contact is made between each HDCC staff member and their Manchester partner through emails and through Skype-video-conferencing to eliminate the boundaries that separate the organizations which are over 9000km apart.

International exchanges have also been made, where staff have worked in-situ on developing new skills, approaches, experience and new relationships. IT Manager Fazlim Batcha was in Manchester for six months and gained Microsoft training qualifications working with other employees in the Manchester IT Department. Other visits have been exchanged and the HDCC, Director General Azmi Thassim and the Manchester Solutions, Deputy CEO Drew Thomas now make annual trips to their counterparts to monitor and accelerate the progress. Long lasting personal friendships have consequently been built which can only strengthen the partnership further.

The results of HDCC capacity building put it in an excellent position to assist local businesses in taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the projects such as the international airport and the deep-sea port etc. Ultimately, these are undoubtedly going to have profound effects on the local economy and the two organizations will be working especially hard in order to maximize the potential advantages of all the future developments in the Hambantota District.