Overview of C4D

Since 1983 the CD Group built up a track record supplying finance and training for over 5,000 Small & Medium Enterprises in Africa, the Caribbean Basin and Latin America and the Middle East. The Group built up experience in support of farmers organizations, urban SME development (retailing, manufacturing, services etc) as well as in housing, artisanal fisheries and tourism. In the last few years CD companies also developed an SME approach towards Energy and Urban Water Supply mainly in ASEAN countries.

The Group focused on the transition from conflict and disaster to development after wars and major political changes, supporting refugees or displaced persons as well as farmers and small businesses seeking to recover, in Mozambique, Namibia, Palestine, Jordan and Lebanon. You can see this track record by clicking on the CD Group, which tells its history, or by looking up more recent CD Project References. The Group has offices near London (UK) , in Accra (Ghana -West Africa) and in Jakarta (Indonesia).

Previously we were only involved in economic promotion activities in Indonesia (since 1998) whilst working towards feasibility studies and project development. We are already active in promotion of EU economic co-operation and trade in the Indonesian provinces and just completed a series of training workshops (on EU funding for small scale economic and social development and EU-Indonesia SME links ) in Arkansan, Blipping (Aliment) , Surabaya and Simmering (Java) and Padang and Medan (Sumatra). We did this with the British Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia .In the Medan meetings in December 2004 we met a delegation from the private sector, NGos and universioties from Aceh and planned a further workshop for Aceh Province. We are restablishing these local contacts now. We have strong local connections in Medan and North Sumatra. We will try to support the economic recovery in Aceh but will chose carefully what to do and how to do it, working with local partners, coordinating with other agencies and focussing on long term development. It will take us 3 to 6 months to gear up to implement such programmes ( see some ideas below).

The CD Group Web Site can help you access Professional EU Tours, Training on EU Funding, Training for Small & Medium Enterprises and CD Fund Mobilization Services. As the web site is developed we will include CD Media Products including DVD versions of training films produced in support of training courses. For example we made a film on disaster preparedness in Jamaica after Hurricane Gilbert. We will also provide access to the CD Photo Library. Some of these media resources are in several languages including Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic and Bahasa Indonesia.

The CD Group comprise non profit distributing companies. We generally work as Project Partners and not as Consultants. We will help take project ideas from pre-feasibility studies to Joint Ventures. If you are interested to join our list of Volunteers or Consultants in any of these areas please send us your CV. If you would like us to put together a training package for your organization or help to mobilize funds for a project or programme then please get in touch with Dr Terry Lacey (our founder) at drterry@c4d-info.org