First, as you all know, we have moved online. We look forward to being able to see each other in person, but we have also realized the efficiency of online meetings, and the ability to widen participation to the regions, Europe, and the globe. We aim to keep some of those advantages once the pandemic is over.

Both our functional committees- Human Resources, Marketing, and Finance- and our sectoral Councils- Digital Economy, Technology, Real Estate, Health Care, and Tourism- are focused on answering the key questions businesses face in maintaining operations during the pandemic and emerging once it is suppressed. Our General Assembly was broken into several pieces so that experts could discuss such issues as the state of the residential real estate market, the future of the automotive industry, and how The Country for the Future was impacted by the crisis.

Our advocacy was initially focused on aiding impacted companies. We helped arrange an offer of 90 million FFP2 masks. We advocated better terms for the Anti-Virus programs. And we still pursued issues such as the National Cancer Plan and Construction law reform that will help the country rebound from the virus, and shift to a higher value-added economy.

The board has been discussing the economic consequences of the virus and issuing regular assessments. Yesterday, we discussed public safety and vaccination plans with Roman Prymula, and we will be providing you with key outcomes from that session in the assessment that will be sent next week. We aim to continue that work to provide members with more information and insight to assist their business planning, and we encourage more members to get involved in these discussions.

Finally, we are encouraged by the spirit of cooperation expressed by the Biden administration. For many years, the relationship between the EU and America has been restricted by a sibling rivalry over regulatory authority. We would like to do our part to make the transatlantic relationship more constructive. We will start with the digital economy and spread our efforts to technology development and sustainability. To turn ambition into action, we have asked the US Embassy to continue our twice annual agenda-setting discussions while we await the arrival of new ambassador.

The key to recovery is going to be participation and cooperation. We want to make AmCham a platform that spurs economic growth. To do that, we need you. Please contact us to discuss how you can get involved.

With my best wishes for you and your colleagues,

Michal Chour

President

American Chamber of Commerce in the Czech Republic