TAWASAL | MESSAGES
CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE Dear Members, It is a great pleasure to include this message in the inaugural edition of Tawasal, a name which reflects the core mission of AmCham Abu Dhabi: “to connect” the United States and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi through the promotion of trade, investment, and goodwill. I encourage you to review the entire newsletter to learn more about the work of your chamber over the past six months, and please forward it along to your friends and colleagues. This March brought us our 5th annual AmCham Abu Dhabi Roundtable Summit and the creation of the new Abu Dhabi - United States Economic Council with three key strategic partners: the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, the U.S. Embassy - Abu Dhabi, and the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce & Industry. This new Economic Council will bring together the leadership of these leading organizations and provide a regular forum for us to raise issues of concern to our members and to work collaboratively to address factors that hinder trade and investment. The report of the 2013 Roundtable Summit will be released soon, and we believe the issues highlighted in the report will aid the Economic Council in setting its agenda. On the heels of the Roundtable Summit came our annual AmCham Advocacy Week where a delegation of volunteers from our U.S. Public Affairs Committee continued to raise awareness in Washington, DC of the unique concerns of Overseas Americans, and spread our message that Americans Abroad = US Exports = Jobs at Home! The committee’s report of this year’s Advocacy Week will be released in the weeks ahead and the committee will continue to update our membership on relevant developments in Washington. On July 1, my second term as Chairman will conclude and a new Chairman will take office. Our governing documents provide for an advisory role for the immediate past Chairman, and I intend to stay involved in the work of the board and our committees; however, I look forward to the fresh ideas that new leadership will naturally bring to the organization. It has been a great honor and pleasure to serve on the board of AmCham Abu Dhabi since 2010 and I will certainly miss my regular interaction with our great staff and membership. I wish to thank the dedicated AmCham staff and interns, our generous sponsors, our many member volunteers, our key strategic partners in the U.A.E. and U.S., and Ambassador Corbin and his excellent team at the U.S. Embassy, for their tireless effort and support during my term of office. It is your generous contributions that have made AmCham Abu Dhabi the recognized voice of American business in the U.A.E. Very truly yours,
Gregory J. Golden Chairman 3