To promote the new corp of Thai Hom Mali Rice this year, Mrs. Porntiva Nakasai, Minister of Commerce of the Royal Thai Government, hosted a luncheon event on December 13 in Hong Kong and delivered a speech aiming to share the quality of real Thai Hom Mali Rice.
About 30 members attended the Council's Annual General Meeting. The year 2009 was an eventful one for Thailand and indeed the world, and the Council played its part in keeping members informed about the changing political and economic situation in the Kingdom and the affects of global events on Hong Kong and the Mainland. The Council continued to develop ties with other organizations. Our Chairman, Mr. Bernard Chan, GBS, JP, summarized the past activities of the Council and stressed that the mission in 2011 and beyond was again, to expand the number and range of activities.
Mr. Bernard Chan. GBS, JP, Mr. Raphael Tong and Mr. Willy Lin Sun Mo, JP were re-elected as Directors for the ensuing year. Simultaneously, Ernst & Young was re-appointed the Council's Honorary Auditors. The current Board of Directors consists of 10 directors:
1) Mr. Bernard Chan, GBS, JP, President of Asia Financial Group
2) Mr. William Chao, Managing Director of Wing Wah Limited
3) Mr. Tom V. Chatjaval, Founder and Chairman & CEO of TVC Management Ltd
4) Mr. Kenneth Gaw, President & Managing Principal of Gaw Capital
5) Mr. Horst Geicke, Chairman and Co-Founder of Pacific Alliance Group, VinaCapital Group
6) M. Clayton T. Hebbard, Consultant of Grant Thornton
7) Dr. Harry Lee, SBS, JP, Managing Director of TAL Apparel Limited
8) Mr. Willy Lin, Managing Director of Milo's Knitwear (International) Ltd
9) Mrs. Katherine Ngan, JP, Executive Director of May Cheong Toy Products Fty Ltd
10) Mr. Raphael Tong, Managing Director of Shanghai Mister Softee Food Products Co Limited
We were honored to have a special guest joining us at the luncheon right after our AGM, Mr. Dennis Brown, Corporate Chief Executive Officer of Bumrungrad Hospital Public Company Limited and Chief Executive Officer of Bumrungrad International Limited. Prior to joining Bumrungrad, he was CEO of Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore. Mr. Brown has worked in the healthcare field in Thailand, the United States, Australia and Singapore for a total of 29 years, much of the time in multi-facility management and hospital operations.
Co-organized by the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce, Danish Chamber of Commerce and Hong Kong Bahrain Business Association, the 43rd InterCham YP Cocktail provided an excellent opportunity for all of us to meet and mingle with professionals from over 27 different international chambers and business organizations in Hong Kong.
Speaker Bruno Charrade, Managing Director of Hong Kong Tramways Ltd. talked about what and how Veolia intends to improve while preserving the tradition; why such a take-over has been accepted; how Veolia's communicates and builds a new trustful relationship with the local population and users; from a HR perspective, which management style and actions this change of ownership will bring, or are necessary.
In January 2010, Dr. Eden Woon was named the Managing Director of Li & Fung Group's China Corporate Office, based in Shanghai. He is responsible for representing the Li & Fung Group in China, for advising the Group on China strategy and business development, and for developing and nurturing long-term relationships with government and media in China.
From 2007 to 2009, Dr. Eden Woon was the Managing Director-China of Toys LiFung Limited-a member of the Li & Fung Group, responsible for developing the Toys "R" Us business in Mainland China.
From 2006 to 2007, Dr. Woon was Vice-President, Greater China for Starbucks Coffee Company.
Dr. Woon was the CEO of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce, the oldest and largest business organization in Hong Kong, from 1997 to 2006.
A career U.S. Air Force officer who retired as a Colonel in 1993, Dr. Woon served as China policy advisor for the U.S. Secretary of Defense from 1989-94, and was assigned to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing from 1983-85. Dr. Woon continues to be an economic advisor for a number of provinces and cities in China. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.
This session took the form of an address by Mr Simon Reddy, Executive Director of C40 Large Cities Climate Leadership Group focusing on the way forward for global efforts in managing climate change.
The second part of this important session was a panel discussion with Hong Kong delegates who were at the COP15 meeting in December 2009.