Australia joins international supply-chain forum

AUSTRALIA participated in the Global Supply Chain Resilience Forum last week.

Minister of industry and science Ed Husic joined the virtual ministerial forum, which was hosted by the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.

According to a statement from Mr Husic, the Global Supply Chain Resilience Forum is the largest multilateral forum focused on supply-chain resilience and complements Australia’s other international engagements on supply chains such as the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and the Quadrilateral Security Forum.

In the meeting, Mr Husic emphasised the importance of having both a national and international approach in addressing stresses in global supply chain and the role of governments to step in and support businesses and workers where the supply of essential goods and services is at risk of significant disruption.

Mr Husic said resilient global supply chains reinforced the prosperity, security and wellbeing of the nation.

“Collaboration with international partners is vital to building more resilient, transparent and diverse global supply chains. That’s why Australia needs to work with like-minded countries to ensure access to essential goods and services are supported particularly when there is disruption,” Mr Husic said.

“The voices of businesses, workers and community groups are central to these discussions as they are the first line of defence for maintaining well-functioning supply chains.”

Mr Husic said the Australian government is committed to respond to important views raised by stakeholders at the forum, including the need to ensure there is adequate workforce in times of crisis, the critical role of public procurement in strengthening and diversifying supply chains, and the need for substantial public-private partnerships to build critical supply chain resilience.

Ministers from Brazil, Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the EU, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Singapore, South Korea, Spain and the UK also attended the forum.