The pressure on Australian businesses during the pandemic and the following effect on the supply chain has pushed many established building and construction companies out of business, unable to payroll the delays from interstate and overseas suppliers. The Federal Government is now taking action to sure up these supply chains for an uncertain future, Trade Minister Don Farrell joined Ministers from the 13 other Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) countries to sign off the first IPEF Supply Chains agreement. This agreement will create a Crisis Response Network to enable a fast collective response to critical shortages due to supply chain disruptions.
The first-of-its-kind agreement is a welcome step in helping Australia reduce market instability and enable continuous access to critical goods. Supporting Australian businesses and in turn consumers to continue in times of crisis. With one of the greatest threats to the supply chain lying in choke points and single points of failure, the IPEF Supply Chains Council has created action plans as they investigate these areas of vulnerability to develop a shared understanding of global supply chain risks.
In addition, the Supply Chains Agreement is a step towards ensuring a higher standard of labour rights within the Indo-Pacific, with a focus on labour practises through the IPEF Labour Rights Advisory Board. This Board will work with the region’s supply chains to bring to light any labour force practices that are not adhering to standards and their effect on the supply chain flow.
Australia welcomes this further development of cooperation and transparency in the many joint projects with our neighbours. The achievement is a result of the Australian Government’s commitment to trade and investment of $25 million in capacity building and assistance across all areas of the IPEF work agenda in the 2023-24 budget. With further beneficial agreements hoped for the future.
