Matthew Weisheit, Regional Development Manager for the EAP region, looks back at the main achievements of 2008 and discusses exciting opportunities for the New Year

What have been the main achievements of your region in the past year?

We have made significant progress in terms of improving professional administration. This includes making important General Manager/CEO appointments in six of our 10 Member Countries and a successful delivery of our Regional Conference.

Other highlights include the continued progression of the Cricket Indonesia U/15 Development Program; Samoa securing many new grounds; Vanuatu and Japan both participating in their first Pepsi ICC World Cricket League tournaments, Fiji commencing a broader development program and PNG demonstrating a strong improvement both on and off the field.

**Do you think that cricket in your region is in a stronger position than it was 12 months ago?**No doubt, we believe we have made solid progress and are generally in a good position to move forward and benefit from the increased funding that is available in 2009.

We expect to record encouraging participation growth once research figures for 2008 are collated and this is also complemented by the progress we have made in supporting the capacity of Members to deliver their own Development and High Performance programs.

What has been your favourite Development cricket moment of the year?

Confirmation of the ICC Global Funding Policy has been the biggest off-field highlight. The on-field highlight for our region was the performance of the PNG team at the ICC U/19 Cricket World Cup where they finished 12 of 16 and finished ahead of one Full Member and three of the other five Associates.

What are you most excited about in cricket in your region in 2009?

We are looking forward to the opportunity to further build the capacity of our Member Countries. We have improved our administrative structures, although there is still some significant progress to be made in this area, and have laid some foundations to build the capacity of Member country development and High Performance programs, so the challenge to improve these structures is exciting.

What do you think the ICC's new Developing Cricket World Funding Policy will mean for Associate and Affiliate Members from 2009 onwards?
The new funding policy will provide greater opportunities to improve Member country structures and depth of development programs. However, these opportunities will not materialise into results just because Members have more funds at their disposal, it is critical that the increased funds are matched by increased professionalism, responsibility and desire to achieve and progress. Members that can complement increased funding with the right attitude and improved structures will set themselves up to make significant progress.