The first World Ports and Trade Summit (WPTS) World Ports Award has been handed to Eddy Bruyninckx, CEO of the Port of Antwerp in Belgium, in recognition of the outstanding job he has done over a period of 20 years in the fields of business development, port organisation, sustainability and corporate social responsibility.
The award was presented by Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansouri of the Ministry of Economy in the UAE during a prestigious gala dinner to celebrate the 2nd World Ports and Trade Summit, held in association withADPC (Abu Dhabi Ports Company).
'It is a great honour for the Port of Antwerp to be rewarded with the WPTS World Port Award,' said Mr Bruyninckx on receiving the award. 'We consider this award as a recognition for the efforts that the Antwerp Port Authority – not only the CEO, but also the management committee and every one of our 1,650 colleagues – has done over the past decades to develop the Port of Antwerp as a world class port.
'Even when times were challenging, we stood up and developed, together with the private port companies, a 'Total plan for a more competitive port', as an answer to the worldwide crisis of 2009,' he added. 'We specifically appreciate this consideration from the United Arab Emirates as we have been close partners in many fields in the past.
“Investments in both regions create a lot of co-operation possibilities and this award to Antwerp shows that our efforts to collaborate and share expertise, together with our daughter company Port of Antwerp International.'
