Drogheda & District Chamber and Lisburn Chamber of Commerce have signed a ‘Friendship & Solidary’ agreement as part of a new cross-border collaboration project.
The respective presidents, Ruth Young from Lisburn and Naomi Tully from Drogheda, met to finalise the historic bond in Lisburn.
L-R: Lisburn Chamber President Ruth Young, Cllr Paddy McQuillan, Cllr Kurtis Dickson & Chamber President Naomi Tully.
“We are committing to working in harmony to enhance business, educational, tourism and community links into the future for the betterment of our respective areas and for the people who reside in both regions.
“The core value of any chamber is to be a part of the fabric of society and to play an enduring role in how it develops for the good of everyone,” Naomi remarked.
Ruth added, “We see the bond created by our association as a way to advance and enhance business relationships, to create a network of opportunities for all our members and to spark collaboration and trust across the wider sections of our communities.
“The relationship is built on goodwill and with the intention of planting the seed for future endeavours. At a time when the world needs to unite on so many fronts, we see this bond as the start of a journey that will benefit all parties.”
The signing was attended by David Honeyford MLA who sees the move as a very positive one for the region, stating that he would like to see the respective local authorities engaging as a result of the chamber links.
“This is a really important development as we position Lagan Valley within the Belfast Dublin Economic Corridor and work to create jobs and bring investment to our area. Well done to everyone in the Chamber for taking the lead and making this happen,” he stated.
The council’s Economic Development section was also represented at the gathering.
“This is the start of the journey for Drogheda and Lisburn. We’ll be welcoming them to Drogheda and district in the future and showing off the many attractions of this region,” chamber CEO, Hubert Murphy, stated.
“We presented the chamber with a hamper of just some of the vast range of goods produced locally, from McCloskey’s famous brown bread to Boyne Valley Honey, Newgrange Gold, Boann Whiskey, WaterWipes, East Coast Bakehouse biscuits and the magical attributes of Oriel Sea Salt, which they were very enthusiastic about.”
“We will be exchanging information and best practices related to chamber operations and member services and how both parties can benefit and considering joint events, such as business delegations, informal or formal visits, and networking sessions between the chambers,” the CEO added.
“We want to support each other in promoting trade and investment opportunities between the respective regions and share resources and knowledge to benefit members of both chambers.”
For more information: Contact Hubert Murphy at ceo@droghedachamber.ie or phone: 086 2037774.