The trade and investment arm of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Pacific Islands Trade & Invest (PT&I), in collaboration with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, is conducting the first ever Pacific Export Survey. Seeking to capture the opinions of exporters regarding business confidence, the investment climate and export trends, exporters of goods and services from the Pacific Islands are invited to share their views.
Service based businesses make up a significant proportion of regional exports. Tourism operators, accommodation providers, the legal and financial sector, as well as training and education providers are all encouraged to participate in the survey, alongside the better known exporters of goods and manufactured products.
Indeed, the Pacific Islands export community is diverse, representing businesses of various sizes and from many sectors. However, according to the Sydney-based Trade Commissioner for Pacific Islands Trade & Invest, Caleb Jarvis “the region ischaracterised by a lack of private sector data, and while there is much talk of private sector development, few studies have gone direct to the exporters of goods and services to ask for their views.”
The objective of the research is to provide a greater understanding of the diversity of industry in our region; the size, shape, as well as opportunities and challenges – particularly with regard to international trade. The survey will also examine the future outlook and highlight changes in overseas demand. Such a study has never been conducted in the region and will provide a much-needed assessment of our important and productive export sectors.
Says Jarvis, “This Pacific Export Survey will provide Pacific businesses and governments with a deeper understanding of the current state of play, and where we need to improve the export enabling environment.”
The survey can be accessed online, at www.pacificexportsurvey.com and should take less than 10 minutes to complete. All Pacific Islands based businesses that are involved in exporting goods or services are strongly encouraged to participate and voice their opinions. The survey will be open for 3 weeks, closing by mid-April depending on the response rate.
To thank participants for their time, each respondent will be entered into a Prize Draw for a chance to win an Apple iPad (16GBwith Wi-Fi and Cellular) valued at A$598.
The results will be confidential and will only be shared in aggregate. They will be analysed and the Executive Summary will be available to all participants and circulated widely.
Further information:
Pacific Islands Trade & Invest (PT&I)
Pacific Islands Trade & Invest is the region’s leading in-market export facilitation, investment and tourism promotion agency. An arm of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat based in Fiji, we are tasked by Leaders to develop and grow international markets for Pacific Islands business.
Pacific Islands Trade & Invest has offices in Auckland, Beijing, Sydney and Tokyo and desks based in Geneva and Suva.
Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)
The role of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is to advance the interests of Australia and Australians internationally. This involves working to strengthen Australia’s security; enhancing Australia’s prosperity; helping Australiantravellers and Australians overseas and delivering an effective and high quality aid programme.
As part of its economic diplomacy efforts, the major focus for the Australian Government is prioritising private sector led growth in the Pacific.
For more information contact:
Tim Martin, Pacific Islands Trade & Invest, Sydney, Australia via email tim.martin@pacifictradeinvest.
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