| Sweden plans official state visit to Pass Christian |
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The first official state visit to South Mississippi by the Swedish government since Hurricane Katrina will be Monday in Pass Christian, said the president of the Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce South Central region. Parliament Member Carina Adolffson Eglestam will first tour New Orleans and then the Pass in order to put together an official report of the devastation to the Swedish government for potential aid purposes. Eglestam will be seeking out investment and business opportunities at the same time, said Steve Vassallo, SACC-SC president. "She's going to talk to Parliament and to the private sector as well about potential opportunities for housing over here," said Vassallo , adding Eglestam has a lot of prior experience with housing issues. "The Swedes have some very advanced technology in the housing area." Mayor pro tem Chipper McDermott said the Pass was eager for any investment, especially now. "We're going to show them what we got," said McDermott, adding that with their harbor, protected waterways and swaths of undeveloped land, there is much room to grow economically in the Pass.
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The SACC built a facility in Madison almost two years ago to expand its operations in the states of Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas, Vassallo said. "We're the only foreign chamber of commerce ever to represent Mississippi in the history of the state," Vassallo said. "Go figure that it's Sweden." The SACC currently has 19 regional operations in or near most major urban areas in America, according to the chamber's Web site. The SACC was formed in 1906 in New York to develop economic opportunities between the two countries and is the oldest organization of its kind, according to its Web site. |