I would like to start with by thanking all those associates and guests who came to the Annual General Meeting and the presentation of the Nautical Awards. It thanks to people like you, 100% committed to the sector, that we manage to make progress.
Progress has always been one of the principal goals of our association. In the recent years we have participated in some of the most important advances in the sector. This might sound pompous and exaggerated, but in reality it is not. Side by side with ANEN we managed to exempt nautical charter of the matriculation tax. We also managed to get the recreational yachting recognized in its own right for the first time in the new Law of Navigation, separated from the Merchant Navy. We were also involved in the process of modernization of the nautical qualifications.
Right now we are doing the groundwork with ANEN for the future Nautical Professional Training and the Collective Agreement for our sector. Here in the Balearic Islands we have managed to revive the Palma Boat Show and to make name for it internationally. Worth mentioning is also another of our achievements - the simplification of the access to the launching ramps for boat trailers through one single card, given out by Ports IB.
All these achievements are a result of the joint efforts and resources of a great number of people. And this is how you reach your goals: by working hard and by investing time and money. This is why the Balearic Islands have become once again the national market leaders when it comes to boat registrations, ahead of the heavyweights like Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia.
The future might be looking bright for the first time in many years, but it won´t be any excuse for us to take it easy. The association will tirelessly continue to put pressure on the administration in order to eliminate all the obstacles that stay in the way of legal and fiscal harmonization with our neighboring countries.
We are going to carry on working in order to eliminate the matriculation tax altogether, to minimize the fiscal burden of our companies, to achieve high quality training for our sector and to create a functioning collective agreement for the benefit of everybody. We are going to make a maximum effort so that you can concentrate on your work and on your clients. So that companies like Dinatec or Dahlberg, whose trajectories we pay tribute to today, will continue excelling for many more years to come.
In the section for News in Brief you will find various interviews with the award winners. I would like to say just a few words about each of them
Dinatec was presented with the award for the Most Outstanding Professional Trajectory. Toni Socias is well known businessman in the sector. He has dedicated over half of his life for serving the sailors and looking after their needs. His children are continuing in the family business and we wish them all the good fortune they deserve.
AENIB also wished to reward the loyalty and commitment of their longest standing members. This year the company Dahlberg S.A received the award for the longest membership. The history of Dahlberg is closely tied to the modern recreational yachting. Its founder, Kjell Dahlberg, was one of the pioneers to open a business specialized in yacht repairs, back in 1972. Nowadays three generations of the Dalhberg family dedicate themselves to the business.
Last but not least, we also wanted to recognize the labour of those public administrations that have shown the most interest in boosting our sector. This year the award goes without a doubt to the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands and to its president, Alberto Pons. We would like to emphasize his good relationship with the companies of the sector, his easy manners and his accessibility, as well as his vast knowledge of the problems of the recreational nautical sector.
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