Executive summary Introduction The German-Thai Chamber of Commerce (GTCC) in Bangkok is a member of the German Chambers of Commerce Worldwide Network (AHK), with 140 locations in 92 countries. Since its establishment in Bangkok in 1962, the GTCC has maintained itself as a reliable intermediary between German and Thai businesses, thus contributing to the dynamism of the economic development in both countries. In the course of 2021, GTCC put together about 166 events in total (83 events of the Membership, Events and Communications Department, 6 events of the Corporate Services Department, 1 event of the Trade Fair Department and 76 events of the GTDEE Department) and activities that encouraged further development and interaction of the German-Thai business community within Thailand and abroad. Despite the challenges of ever-changing covid-19 safety measures, GTCC team learnt to adapt to the situation. The reputation of being able to offer variety of opportunities and collaborations to members, partners and counterparts had been maintained through new/ adapted GTCC services and activities.
Membership, Events and Communications By the end of 2021, GTCC managed to sustain 526 members in the face of the covid-19 pandemic in Thailand and worldwide which largely affected business activities. There were 462 members in Thailand (including 6 honourary members), plus 64 members in Germany and other countries. The Board of the GTCC has decided to initiate the establishment of GTCC Industry Committees on Human Resources, Tourism and Hospitality and Logistics to enhance the active participation of our members in GTCC activities, offer platforms for the exchange of knowledge and experiences among our members and discuss suggestions and proposals GTCC can put forward in the cooperation with our Thai partners in business, government and society. The GTCC HR committee organised two webinars and a virtual exchange. There was also a virtual preparatory meeting of the GTCC Tourism and Hospitality Committee. GTCC members actively participated in GTCC’s virtual and physical events. Although GTCC Ball, GTCC Wine Dinner as well as GTCC Oktoberfest could not be organised due to the Covid-19 outbreak, GTCC held GTCC connects: Welcome New Year and GTCC Year End Cocktail Reception successfully with a limited number of participants to comply with the Thai government’s Covid-19 safety measures. GTCC also organised two member exclusive site visits to Bader Asia Co., Ltd. and Continental Tyres (Thailand) Co., Ltd. Monthly “GTCC Clean Air Initiative (CAI) Series - Green Solutions from Germany” webinars and monthly virtual get-together GTCC Open Forums had served as the alternative platforms for members to stay connect when it was not possible to organise the physical events. GTCC continued utilising social media platforms such as facebook, LinkedIn, and twitter, to keep its members, business partners informed about events, activities and key changes in the business community. #IntroducingGTCCMembers media campaign was continued throughout the year to promote new members to the public. GTCC also fully supported its members by promoting their activities through its website’s members news section and a weekly e-newsletter “GTCC members promotions”. A biweekly GTCC e-UPDATE newsletter is the main channel for updated economic and selected member news. Quarterly UPDATE e-magazine remains a major publication providing essential information about the business and industry sectors in Thailand. Our online membership directory offered more relevant and up-to-date database with dedicated user account and password to access members’ profiles and contact details.
www.thailand.ahk.de
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