Dear Members and Friends,
As many of you will be aware, we have recently had some leadership changes at BEI — I’ve taken on the role of CEO of British Expertise International and I am really excited and looking forward to working with you all as we continue to deliver our growth strategy and enhance the support to members and our networks. You will find the public announcement HERE. At the same time, hearty congratulations to my predecessor Tom Cargill who will be missed as he takes on his new appointment as CEO of Wilton Park, the executive agency of the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). Tom will be joining our Advisory Group as Vice-Chair and will also continue his role as Non-Executive Chair of our sister company, British Foreign Policy Group (BFPG). BEI and Wilton Park will look to develop new partnerships to build more effective national industry-Government collaboration strengthening the UK’s place in the world as a ‘force for good’ and in this way continue to underline the very productive relationship between BEI, its members and government.
Preparations for the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (CoP26) stepped up a gear as Alok Sharma became full-time President of CoP26 (a role he has held since February 2020). Kwasi Kwarteng has stepped up as Secretary of State for BEIS. As part of formulating our plans for 2021, BEI carried out a mini questionnaire amongst our Infrastructure Exports Working Group to test members’ understanding and views on Climate Change, specifically focusing on CoP26. The results showed that many members felt informed about Climate Change/Net Zero, but few felt they knew enough about CoP26 and would like to hear more from the UK’s CoP26 team and HMG Ministers. We will look to keep members informed of our engagements with government and other stakeholders as we look to present clearly articulated British international capabilities and offering in the key sectors our members work in. Many who took part in the questionnaire noted that they have in house resources that may able to contribute to a cross-BEI Working Group. We would like to invite members with interests in Climate Change and Environment, Net Zero or CoP26 to register their interest in joining a working group to email Joe McLynn. Your support will be much appreciated.
Next Week at BEI…
On 19th January, join us for an event on the Future of Infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. The country’s programme of economic diversification presents some exciting opportunities for UK companies in the infrastructure sector. Expanding the country’s physical and digital infrastructure is a core component of the Saudi Vision 2030, a process in which UK expertise could play a significant role.
On 20th January, British Ambassador to Kuwait, HE Michael Davenport and the Trade team will share insights on the benefits of Doing Business in Kuwait and discuss how UK business can leverage these opportunities. This event will also provide current political and economic updates. Key sectors of opportunities include infrastructure, energy, and food processing.
Future Event Highlights…
On 26th January, we look forward to hosting the World Bank Group as they present their flagship semi-annual Global Economic Prospects Report examining global economic developments highlighting the latest on the impact of Covid-19, with a focus on emerging markets and developing economies.
On 27th January, we look forward to hosting Bo Sundstrom, Head of the FCDO’S EU Development Programme, as the FCDO Europe Department shares the latest insights on the relationship in international development work between the UK and EU27 going forward. Register here for this event.
Later on 27th January, we look forward to hosting Andrew Griffith MP, UK’s Net Zero Business Champion whose role is to support the country’s business community to make credible plans to net zero by 2050 or earlier. Andrew is ex COO of SKY, now MP for Arundel, and briefly the PM’s advisor on business before entering parliament last year. Andrew will share insights on his role in developing credible plans with business in the race to net zero by 2050 or earlier and showcase the UK’s place as a global leader in tackling climate change.
Remember…
Join our LinkedIn Group!
BEI LinkedIn Group, share insights, see our upcoming events highlights and as members share your latest news and thought leadership. Join the group here.
Visit our Member News & Resources
Our new website is now geared to showcase the latest news from both BEI and our members. Visit the Member News section and reach out to Matthew Gibbons with your news and articles.
Recruitment Board
Take advantage of the new Job Board on our website to post your organisation’s vacancies, currently this facility is available for free.
You will find highlights of our activities and events for last year in our 2020 Yearbook .
With Best Wishes
Derrick
Derrick Sanyahumbi
Chief Executive Officer
British Expertise International
Upcoming Events
The events below will be hosted via webinar. For any event registration support please contact Matthew Gibbons. Click on titles to access full event details. The full calendar of events can be viewed here and recently added event dates are highlighted with an asterisk*.
19th January, 2021 — The Future of Infrastructure in Saudi Arabia
20th January, 2021 — Kuwait — Growing Market Opportunities (Deep-Dive Series)
26th January, 2021 — World Bank Economic Prospects: What 2021 Holds for the Global Economy
27th January, 2021 — The FCDO-EU Relationship post-Brexit
27th January, 2021* — Andrew Griffith MP: UK’s Net Zero Business Champion
1st February, 2021 — BEI Education Working Group
4th February, 2021 — Latest Innovations in Disease Control & Climate Monitoring (BEI Awards Winners Series)
9th February, 2021 — Achieving Positive Social Impact in International Education (BEI Awards Winners Series)
11th February, 2021 — Effectives Strategies for Working with Government Clients Internationally (BEI Awards Winners Series)
11th February, 2021 — BEI Infrastructure Exports Working Group
16th February, 2021 — Tajikistan — UK Trade Mission Scoping Meeting
18th February, 2021 — Address Resilience & Security in International Projects (BEI Awards Winners Series)
23rd February, 2021 — Minister Stuart: Post Brexit Trade & Sustainability
External News & Events
Crown Agents have released their annual impact statement where they showcase the work of Crown Agents over the last year, reaching over 36 million people across 60 countries.
18–21st January — Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. The virtual ADSW Summit will bring together leaders from policy, business and technology to define new pathways for delivering a green recovery in a post COVID-19 world.
19th and 20th January, 2021 — BEI member GovRisk is extending an invitation to all interested BEI members for the UK Government’s Virtual Compliance and Transparency Forum which GovRisk is supporting as a part of its ongoing FCDO-funded work in China. For further details and to register please follow this link: https://ctf2021.app.rsvpify.com.
20th January, 2021 — The UK Department for International Trade is delighted to invite you to attend the Africa Investment Conference on 20 January 2021. This virtual event will mark the one-year anniversary of the landmark UK-Africa Investment Summit hosted by the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, in London. For more information, and to RSVP to the event, visit: https://www.events.great.gov.uk/website/3529/
20th January, 2021 — BEI is delighted to be supporting the UK-Japan Free Trade Summit: A Shared Political, Economic and Financial Vision for Mutual Benefit (20 January). The event will provide delegates with an in-depth understanding of the UK-Japan Free Trade agreement, its key benefits as well as an analysis of the business opportunities in the key industry sectors, both in terms of export potential and direct investment. Use code JFT1BEX to get 20% off the booking fees and click here to find out more: www.cityandfinancialconferences.com/japantrade2021.
9th and 11th February, 2021 — Transforming Environmental Data in R. This 2-day interactive online course will help you understand the benefits of data transformation tools (such as R). You will learn about aspects such as auditable workflow, repeatability, timesaving, improving efficiency and reduced risk of data loss.
21st and 22nd April, 2021 — Using Drones to Map Habitats. This two-day interactive online course will provide participants with the basic skills needed to take images collected from a UAV platform such as a quadcopter, process the images into a scene suitable for image processing, and generate classified images. Early bird discount available.
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