The Walker County Chamber of Commerce is one of nine chambers of commerce recentely certified by the Georgia Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (GACCE).

With more than 150 chambers in Georgia, the nine chambers recognized as Georgia Certified Chambers during the 2012 GACCE Leadership Conference in Cordele, Ga., on Nov. 1-2 received “a prestigious honor that distinguishes the high quality, expertise and strong leadership displayed by accredited chambers,” according to a media release.

These nine chambers join 25 other chamber members who were recognized with the distinction in 2011.

Other 2012 Georgia Certified Chambers include Clayton County Chamber, Greater Dalton Chamber, Griffin-Spalding Chamber, Pike County Chamber, Polk County Chamber, Terrell County Chamber, Thomson-McDuffie County Chamber and the White County Chamber.

According to GACCE, the organization’s board of directors sought a way to recognize chambers in the state that have focused internally on their operations to assess strengths, weaknesses and opportunities to create efficient, effective organizations positioned to deliver great value. Thus the Georgia Certified Chamber program was created.

The program is modeled after the U.S. Chamber’s accreditation program. The purpose of the program is to facilitate continuing excellence in the chamber industry and to foster a pro-business environment across the state. Chambers must meet standards in organization, service intent and capacity, professional administration, financial management, communications and advocacy in order to achieve the Georgia Certified Chamber designation.