Your Excellency Mr. Jacques Boisson, Secretary of State of the Principality of Monaco, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Monaco, Honourable Frank Biancheri and Mrs. Biancheri, Your Excellency the President of the Monaco Consular Corps, Your Excellency President of FICAC Mr. Arnold Foote, Your Excellency Mr. Peter Gad Naschitz Past President of FICAC, distinguished ladies and gentlemen….
On the 2nd of October 1982, at Hotel d’Angleterre in Copenhagen, the President of the Consular Corps in Denmark, the Hon, Mr. Ole Olsen, welcomed colleagues from Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Finland, Greece, Norway and from Sweden.
The agenda was to consider the idea noted by the Hon. Vagn Jespersen, of the formation of the World Organization of Honorary Consuls with aim of assisting the National Consular Corps and associations subject to the existing protocol of receiving states in order to give them better opportunities to fulfill their obligations as to facilities, privileges, related to the office of Honorary Consuls and Career Consuls.
To promote also at National and International levels for a better understanding of duties and responsibilities, rights and privileges of Honorary Consuls and Career Consuls.
La Federation Internationales des Corps et Associations Consulaires’ FICAC was born!!
Hon. Consul General Vagn Jespersen served as President of the World Federation of Consuls for 13 years from 1982 until 1995.
In 1995 the new president of FICAC, Consul General Andreas Mavrommatis of Cyprus served for 5 years.
In the year 2000, Consul General Peter Gad Naschitz of Israel was elected President at the Congress in Curacao.
The Congress in Curacao inter alia decided that in order to attain its objectives, its executive committee and other sub committees should reflect regional representation as much as possible.
The stage was then set to broaden the perspectives of FICAC.
The congress appointed a legal and constitutional committee made up of myself (Amarkai Amarteifio) as chairman and Hon. Marcel Myer and Hon. Hans Von Morsel as members.
The committee was charged with the preparation of a new Constitution for FICAC.
The new Constitution was adopted in Athens in 2003.
In the same year of 2003 Hon. Roland Dahlman was elected President of FICAC with Hon. Eric Coufal as his Vice.
The Hon. Aykut Eken the incumbent Treasurer of FICAC has since the year 2004 placed at the disposal of FICAC an office in Brussels together with the service of his staff Mr. Patrick Debus free of charge.
In 2005, La Federation International des Corps et Associations Consulaires AISBL (World Federation of Consuls) was registered in Brussels as a non profit making organisation.
In the year 2006, in Montego Bay, Jamaica, the present executives led by the Hon. Arnold Foote assumed the direction of The World Federation and took it to new levels of Expansion and Development, Unprecedented in the history of FICAC.
Today, there are new structures highlighted by regional chairmen in Europe, Asia, Africa, Central and South America and North America.
Thanks to the dedication and hard work of President Foote.
The organisation can now boast of 87 members and affiliated members.
Achievement and encouragement by members and non members alike have been recognized and rewarded by the institutions of medals of excellence and hard work and merit.
The website of the World Federation has grown in popularity which is only matched by the regular publication of the Federations magazine (FICAC NEWS) Thanks to the dedication and hard work of President Foote.
The solid foundation which has been laid in the past 26 years by the pioneers and the visionaries will certainly inspire the future growth and stability of this noble Institution.
VIVE LA FEDERATION INTERNATIONAL des CORPS et ASSOCIATIONS CONSULAIRES.
