On June 18, I was unanimously elected by my fellow members as Secretary-General of the Consular Corps of Antwerp.

A great personal honour but much more important, it brings enormous prestige and international recognition to Palau.

The province of Antwerp is home to one of the largest consular communities in Europe.

The oldest consulates in Antwerp date back to the early 19th century, before the independence of Belgium: the United States in 1803, Great Britain in 1805, Denmark in 1808 and Switzerland in 1818. After Belgium's independence in 1830: France (1840), the Ottoman Empire (1848) and the Netherlands (1854) also established a consular post in Antwerp.

The Consular Corps of Antwerp (CCA), is a not-for-profit and non-political organisation, run by consuls for consuls serving in the province of Antwerp and representative of the over 70 consulates.

Established as an association of all consuls and consular officers, both career and honorary, working in the province of Antwerp, CCA's aim is to provide networking opportunities as well as informative seminars and conferences to equip consuls with information about the latest developments in the Kingdom of Belgium that impact on the way they discharge their consular duties.

For further information please visit www.consularcorpsantwerp.be