SURREY – Surrey Board of Trade, announced Thursday their commitment to supporting Newcomer Entrepreneurs – Immigrants and Refugees by creating a new entrepreneur program .
“They are a part of our community, for our workforce and for creating jobs. The Surrey Board of Trade is a community of support systems designs through our Business and International Trade Centre,” said Anita Huberman, CEO Surrey Board of Trade.
The Surrey Board of Trade hopes to bridge companies with newcomers – immigrants and refugees – to demonstrate leadership by taking action – in a structured way to ask individual companies, or in partnership with others, on how best to support newcomers based on their own assets and capabilities. The Surrey Board of Trade’s activities will include, but are not limited to: Core business.
Addressing the refugees or newcomers needs through a company’s core business operations, including internal procedures, human resources hiring practices, training, sourcing policies, supply chains, as well as the development of products and services for refugees and newcomers. Giving them access to business opportunities, funding and more through the Surrey Board of Trade’s Business Centre to help fulfill their dreams of economic participation and workforce participation.
Social investment and philanthropy. Financial contributions, relief items and strategic social investment support through volunteering efforts.
Advocacy and public policy engagement. Fostering social cohesion and inter-group dialogue and relationship-building in the workplace, marketplace and community.
Partnership and collective action. Joining forces with Governments, society organizations and/or other businesses to act collectively find solutions for refugees and newcomers and forge long-term partnerships for regional economic and sustainable development.
“We will share the actions that local companies are taking. This is a new commitment to action to help respond to our new residents, our refugees as well as our newcomers. And as co-chair of Surrey’s Local Immigration Partnership Table, the Surrey Board of Trade is the only business organization in all of these partnership tables in B.C. – there to improve the livability of our city, enhance the human capital of our workplaces and support new enterprises.”
Huberman added: “We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action.”
