Australia’s renewed drive to push aid for trade has been given a significant boost with the establishment of the Australian Trade and Development Business Network, a new collaboration seeking to cultivate partnerships between the public and private sectors as well as the academe in this realm.
ATAB — an initiative by the University of Adelaide’s Institute for International Trade and several private firms with the support of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade — hopes to thoroughly enhance private sector engagement in development, one of the keystones of DFAT chief Julie Bishop’s “new aid paradigm” for the country.
“[We] wanted to look at how we could deeply and seriously involve the private sector in aid, generally, and, in particular, aid for trade program in the future,” Jim Redden, a trade and development expert from the University of Adelaide recently appointed chair of the network, told Devex. “We believe there’s a unique opportunity for the private sector and development partners to work together for new and cost-effective development solutions.”