CEO intro
Welcome to the June 2020 e-News from RDAMIW.
Thankfully there seems to be some light appearing at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel, with isolation restrictions starting to be eased. It is stating the obvious that these are unprecedented times and we have seen within our region a heavy toll on business and economic viability across a range of sectors. It has, however, been encouraging to see the resilience of our businesses and SMEs, and the efforts of all three levels of government and private business supporting as best they can the recovery actions. It is evident that while these recovery actions will not help all people, they are making a positive difference for many.
Information from the Treasury Department outlines that 3676 business in the MIW region have received JobKeeper payment support over April 2020, and with further businesses coming into the program in May. This is not surprising, given the COVID-19 impact in the region has seen on average across the more pronounced impacted industries anywhere from 30%-57% decline in revenue and, on average, staff losses of 20%-45%.
RDAMIW, along with other economic development, trade and investment supporting bodies, has been doing its bit to ensure government at all levels are informed, and that business and community have the skills to adapt and innovate coming into COVID-19 recovery. Key activity completed by RDAMIW includes, but is not limited to;
- Weekly reports to federal departments and ministers regarding what we are seeing in relation to COVID-19 economic impacts and performance of COVID-19 stimulus and recovery programs – what is and is not working, what are possible future programs to support recovery, what are immediate actions government can undertake to enhance trade and investment.
- Working with regional stakeholders in the development of a MIW regional COVID-19 Recovery Strategy and Plan.
- Offering training and information seminars to support business in grants development and business case development – in total over 200 businesses in MIW have taken part in the seminars.
- Developing new program concepts to stimulate and enable SME business recovery, and prompting these to government.
- Continuing our support and lead in key areas of economic development, e.g. development of agribusiness leadership in MIW, ag-tech development, foster concept development for aerospace, enhancing export options (METS and food), continuing to support Bio-Futures opportunities, and enhancing regional knowledge and understanding to improve future planning relating to water, energy, transport and freight development, workforce skills and training and building business capacity.
Should you have any queries regarding COVID-19 recovery for business in the MIW region, please do not hesitate to contact RDAMIW.
Stay safe and healthy
Robert Cocco,
RDAMIW CEO
|
