Founding of Association of Certified Commercial Diplomats

The Association's inception was mission specific. An international professional institution focused on the conduct of commercial diplomacy, professionalism and the transmission of the knowledge gained from experience in actually 'practicing' commercial diplomacy to current practitioners and the private foreign affairs and diplomatic community. This was the mission the association embraced and the institutional niche it set out to fill by means of research, development, advanced programmes, independent regulation, public advocacy, interdiplomatic forums and blended learning instruction.

The New Unique Class of Professionals
Commercial diplomats have emerged from the requirements for policy coordination and negotiation among nations on issues affecting global trade, commerce and investment. The training of this new class of professionals has been haphazard at best, and has relied largely on a defacto apprenticeship system, which generates neither enough qualified professionals nor sufficiently well trained professionals. This gap between the demand and supply of qualified commercial diplomats has to be met through dedicated (advanced and specialised) training programmes focused on the skills and knowledge required of a competent professional in the field. 

The Unique Commercial Diplomatic Profession
Commercial diplomacy forms the greatest proportion, in numbers of the trade, commerce, industry and investment professions as a whole. At no time had there been a professional regulation authority and awarding body for commercial diplomats, and the unique 'commercial diplomatic profession' had never been regulated. If professional regulatory and awarding bodies providing training, regulation and accreditation are available for other professions why not for the commercial diplomatic profession - the mainstream of foreign policy?

Distinct Identification and Eligibility
It was considered that in order to overcome the shortcomings in knowledge and practise of commercial diplomacy, and to safeguard and enforce integrity, fully skilled, competent, qualified and certified practitioners should have a distinct identification which could only come about if there were specialised training, professional status, independent regulation, accreditation and qualification. As a result of the urgent need for an independent impartial regulation authority on professionalism, and a global voice that shall provide appropriate regulations, higher examination standards and professional accreditation on commercial diplomatic practise and for commercial diplomacy practitioners, the very first independent global and leading professional awarding body on responsible commercial diplomatic practice at the highest and professional level, and for practitioners was founded