IBBC members and guests enjoyed a lively and festive party at the Reform club in London’s Pall Mall.

Baroness Nicholson welcomed the guests, which included a number of Lords, Parliamentarians, Academics and leading IBBC Business Members and their partners.

 

Christophe Michels, IBBC MD, also welcomed the guests and gave a short review of an exceptional and busy year, with events each month within UK, Iraq and Dubai, a growing and diversifying Membership, a new office in Erbil and the establishment of a new Maritime Authority MOU with the Iraqi Government.

 

He thanked the Members for their support and the IBBC Team. Looking forward, IBBC is set to host the Iraqi Prime Minister on his visit to London in January and attend meetings on Education and Maritime MOU signings. Later in January Mr Michels will be visiting Iraq to prepare for the new IBBC Baghdad Conference in February and also holding the AGM in parliament on 28^th January.  Finally, he introduced ‘Circle’ Singers who sang a range of traditional English carols, accompanied by the Kurdish Santur and to which the whole room sang along with hearty voices.

 

Guests included: The Rt Hon. the Lord Boateng, Mr Jon Wilks CMG, IBBC Senior Advisor, Mr Hans Nijkamp of IBBC Advisory Council, Mr Ahmed Shaban Chairman of the IBBC Maritime Committee, Mr Gaby Fadel, CEO of the Arab Bankers Association, Sir Terence Clarke former Ambassador to Iraq, Dr Alastair Niven, Fellow Oxford St Anthony’s College, Mr Gregory Pontin MP, Lord Richard Balfe, Mr Padraig O Hannelly of IBN, Mr Rod Dowler of Industry Forum, Dr Yaseen Abbas President of the Iraqi red Crescent, H.E. Karwan Tahir Representative for the Kurdistan Regional Government UK, Dr John MacGinnis Chairman of the Nimrud Archaeological Trust, Baroness Mobarik CBE, Dr Karwan Hasan of WHO, Raed Hanna, Mutual Finance, Ms Melodie Leung of Zaha Hadid Architects.