Friday, May 16, 2008

Policy Tracker

Quebec hammers out closer business ties with the Granite State

The Business and Industry Association of New Hampshire is partnering with the Québec Federation of Chambers of Commerce to create the Québec-New Hampshire Business Partnership, an organization intended to encourage cross-border collaboration.

Jim Roche, CEO of the BIA, and Françoise Bertrand, CEO of the FCCQ, signed the agreement at a press conference in Concord, N.H., on Monday. The organizations announced the seven areas where the partnership will focus its resources: trade, the New Hampshire/Québec border, transportation, research and development, tourism, energy, and the environment. 

The partnership said its goals were to promote cross-border trade and tourism; support border security policies and infrastructure projects; encourage partnerships between New Hampshire and Québec research institutions and the development of renewable resources and  promote energy efficiency; and promote sustainable development projects and initiatives.

Roche said the partnership would be building on solid, pre-established cultural and geographic ties. Bertrand said such partnerships were crucial for the U.S. state and the Canadian province to be competitive in an increasingly globalized business world.

The Québec-New Hampshire Business Partnership is supported by the New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development and the Québec Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and Exportation. George Bald, commissioner of the Department of Resources and Economic Development, and France Dionne, delegate general of Québec in Boston, also signed the agreement.

The Québec Federation of Chambers of Commerce is a network of 162 local chambers of commerce, representing about 57,000 businesses in Québec. The Montreal-based organization was founded in 1909. The Business and Industry Association is New Hampshire’s state chamber of commerce. Founded in 1913, the Concord, N.H.-based organization represents 400 New Hampshire companies employing about 80,000 people.