On the occasion of the Belgian economic mission that will be presided by HRH Prince Philippe and which will be in India from 20 to 27 March 2010, the Belgian Publishing House Versant Sud will print an art-book: ‘Belgian Heritage in India’, written by Philippe Falisse, who lived 40 years in India and worked as Attaché Culturel at the Belgian Embassy in Delhi. The book aims at arising the readers’ interest towards the Belgian cultural heritage that is present in India such as the Belgian glass, paintings of Flemish masters etc. It pays a special tribute to eminent Belgian personalities who spent their lives in India and stood out in different fields. …

BLBA member Radical Euro-Services SA launches Connectvendors. Connectvendors is an internet based Enterprise Application “BIDDING/ AUCTION” platform for “E-SERVICES” that functions as a “SERVICE BAZAAR” and allows buyers of services and vendors of services to reach one another over the web, evaluate core competencies, identify the right fit and perform transactions in a hassle free manner. This E-SERVICE MARKET place helps customers, identify the best talent of professionals and cost effective providers through an “OPEN BID / AUCTION” process. The process of registering, posting projects/profiles, identifying, placing a bid, posting deliverables and making payments is all carried out in a seamless manner. REGISTRATION TO CONNECT VENDORS.COM IS FREE BOTH, BUYERS AND VENDORS. Qualified freelancers, part-time job-seekers, students and senior citizens can take advantage of this business gateway and participate in the open bid process. We hereby invite you to register yourselves/ your company on ConnectVendors.com and make yourselves visible globally for business.

From January 10th-13th, the Minister of Economy and Trade of the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, Mr. Jeannot Krecké, has led a trade mission to India during which he visited the cities of Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.

Minister Krecké was be joined by about thirty businessmen representing companies of different sectors of the Luxembourg economy, as well as by about ten high ranking civil servants and ten representatives of Luxembourg media. Minister Krecké also visited the Auto Expo in Delhi, where Luxembourg firms have been present during the whole week….

Milagrow is organizing its annual event the World Small Business Conference 2009 with the theme of ‘My Way, My Vision’ at The Lalit Hotel, Barakhamba Road, New Delhi, on the 16th and 17th of December 2009. Chief guests are Sh. Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Minister of State, Department of Commerce and Industry and Sh. Dinsha J.Patel, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of MSME.
Some of the topics that will be discussed include: Effectiveness of Government Policies for the MSME Sector in India; Grassroots to Global- resurgence and the growth Story of the Indian MSMEs; Collaboration and not just competition between Indian and foreign small & medium businesses; Collaborating with MSMEs from developed countries to enhance the competitiveness of MSMEs in developing countries; Technology as a Big Leveler; How technology can help beat giant corporations, Lessons from USA; Targeting the Marketing Message – Reducing Cost, Increasing Effectiveness. For more information and registration details, go to: www.wsme.in

Belgium-based Belgo-Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BICCI) released its latests India News Flash. BICCI seeks to promote the commercial, industrial, scientific and financial co-operation between Belgium and the Republic of India. The BICC&I also supports educational, cultural and social exchange programmes. Through its channel and its co-operation with Indian, Belgian and European official institutions, BICC&I serves businesses in both directions, from Belgium to India and from India to Belgium.

Excerpt from latest edition of ‘Economic Good News from Belgium’: Dhamra was a small fishing port in the state of Orissa, on the Gulf of Bengal. Thanks to, amongst others, Dredging International, which is part of DEME (Dredging, Environmental and Marine Engineering Group), from Zwijndrecht in the province of Antwerp, a new port will open there on 1 March 2010. Dredgers are deepening the 19 km long access channel to Dhamra. The clay that is scooped up is dumped in the sea further up. Then pure sand is dredged up thirty kilometres away and used to raise the 130 hectares of land where the port terminal will be. In the meantime work is in full swing to build the infrastructure for the terminal – jetties, transfer stations, railways, cranes, conveyor belts, etc. When the terminal is ready …

A year and a half after being set up in January 2008, BLBA member, Picanol India is now well established with three branches offering a comprehensive range of services to the Indian textile industry. “I am very happy that we have managed to build such a solid organization and get up to full speed in the space of a year,” says Mr. P. Kasiviswanathan, Head of Indian Operations.

The head office is located in Delhi, with two other branches in Mumbai and Coimbatore respectively. In addition there is a residential service engineer covering Gujarat, with three people available around the clock stationed in….

From October 31st 2009 onwards, ALL foreign nationals, including the ones working on projects or contracts, will require employment visas to work in India. We advise BLBA members who are affected by these new guidelines to contact their company’s senior tax professionals. Read the Economic Times article by Karishma Julka, senior tax professional with Ernst & Young, India, for some more background information: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/5163647.cms?prtpage=1.

Today BLBA received a message from Eurochambers announcing the postponement of the European Business Delegation to India, 5-6 November 2009:
“Regretfully, we must inform you that the strategic decision was taken to postpone the EBTC European Business Delegation to early 2010 so as to achieve the highest return and visibility. We apologize for the inconvenience and encourage you to remain in contact with us on the matter.” Anita Ryczan, Eurochambers International Affairs. BLBA will keep you informed about the new dates.

It is with great pleasure that we announce the expansion of the Belgian Business Association into the Belgian-Luxembourg Business Association. During the AGM of September 29th, members unanimously approved the resolution put in front of them to expand the BBA into the BLBA. On behalf of the executive committee of the BLBA, we would like to thank all members for their support and look forward to working with them under the umbrella of the BLBA. The new BLBA logo was created by BLBA member company Crystal Hues Limited Limited, an advertising and translation company. We would like to thank Crystal Hues’ president, Mr. Sudheen, and his team for their support. Formalities to finalize the merger will take some more time, but we expect to have everything finalized by the beginning of 2010. We will keep you updated.