A reminder: there’s no “announceable” without “able”
In 2017, Mastercard, in partnership with The Fletcher School at Tufts University, released the most recent edition of the Digital Evolution…
In 2017, Mastercard, in partnership with The Fletcher School at Tufts University, released the most recent edition of the Digital Evolution Index. Australia was listed among “slow-moving countries”, overtaken by countries such as Chile, the UK, Singapore, and New Zealand. Even though it was not a dramatic change from the 2015 edition of the index, Australians were rightfully concerned. With the services sector, one that is impacted the most by the digital economy, being the highest contributor to the GDP, Australia cannot afford to be a laggard in digital transformation. Thankfully, one of the most digitally evolved economies, Singapore, is just around the corner, and there is an opportunity to join forces. I suggested already in 2015 that Australia should be learning from them.
One would think that such an obvious partnership would be easy to implement. Australia already has a free trade agreement with Singapore. Singapore is Australia’s largest trade and investment partner in ASEAN and our seventh-largest 2-way trading partner overall.
And indeed, this is what the two countries considered. In October 2019, Australia and Singapore announced that the two countries would develop “Australia-Singapore Digital Economy Agreement”. A negotiation round was scheduled for early December 2019.
The October 2019 announceable was the last time the public has heard about the agreement, apart from a call for submissions by Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade that was last updated in early November 2019. According to a press release by Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry, the agreement is planned to be finalised in early 2020. Now.
Remember Chile, the UK, Singapore and New Zealand? While there was complete silence about the Australia-Singapore partnership, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore signed a digital trade pact. The UK is now initiating negotiations on a digital economy partnership with Singapore too. The Digital Evolution Index, listing Australia as a slow moving country seems to be as accurate as one can get.
Singapore is a leading digital economy in the world. A partnership between Australia and Singapore can be hugely beneficial to both parties, and — of the two — Australia needs it most. We need to put “able” in that “announceable” from October 2019!
“If the rate of change on the outside exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near.”
Jack Welch