Aust-NZ leadership advances vision for enhanced collaboration

Collaboration on infrastructure, tourism, health technologies and innovation, along with addressing non tariff barriers for agri-business in third markets will be among the key drivers of the CER vision in coming years, say business leaders from Australia and New Zealand.

The 11th Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum met in Sydney on 28 October and brought together over 200 senior representatives from government, business and the wider community from the two countries.

“The future of the relationship lies more in what we can achieve together in relation to global markets rather than our increasingly integrated, but still small, trans-Tasman economy” said New Zealand Forum Co-Chair Adrian Littlewood.

“CER has already created the basis for a single economic market. While some work remains to be done to address remaining barriers, bigger opportunities for us both lie further afield if we can pool our combined strengths and collaborate actively where it makes sense to do so.”

This year’s Forum focused on five key sectors considered to be drivers of new economic value – tourism, infrastructure, health technology, innovation and agri-business.

“The focus on sectors has seen engagement by a range of business people across both countries who have come together to consider what new value can be created by working in a more focused and joined up way across the Tasman” said Australia Co-Chair Rod McGeoch AO.

“The number of people thinking about the future of the relationship has increased significantly and the options presented at the Forum constitute a solid agenda for the two countries to work on”.

Forum knowledge partner McKinsey & Co assisted in the development of these options which have been elaborated within an overall framework of ‘mega trends’ addressing both economies. These trends include greater global interconnections, industrialisation and urbanisation, an aging world and disruptive technologies.

The Leadership Forum was addressed by the Australian Treasurer, Hon Scott Morrison and the New Zealand Finance Minister Hon Bill English. A number of other Ministers also participated.

Recommendations from the Leadership Forum are now being prepared in a letter to the two Prime Ministers.

“The relationship is strong but the scale of the opportunity and the disruptive forces ahead means that we must collaborate and innovate to take the relationship forward” concluded Adrian Littlewood.

Fiona Cooper Clarke, Forum Secretariat
BusinessNZ