O’Connor is pushing for new trade arrangements while his colleagues press voters for electoral support
The buzz was subdued over the weekend, perhaps because Beehive big-wigs’ offices were abandoned for the launch of Labour’s election campaign (which ministers aspiring the keep their jobs, salaries and associated baubles will hope is successful).
One Minister who did find time to make an announcement was Barbara Edmonds, Minister for Pacific Peoples (a portfolio that will disappear if ACT has any influence in the next government).
Her news was that New Zealand’s Tongan community are coming together to promote language sustainability this week, as Uike Lea Faka-Tonga – Tongan Language Week begins.
Statistics New Zealand data shows that Tongans are our fastest-growing Pacific population with over 82,000 calling New Zealand home. Within this group, 40 percent speak the language and only 12 percent under the age of 15 can.
But how many will cast votes?
Tonga Language Week runs from 3 September to 9 September. More information and resources can be found on the Ministry for Pacific Peoples website.
Trade and Export Growth Minister Damien O’Connor gave a clue that he was not at the campaign launch by announcing New Zealand and UAE have begun exploratory discussions on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
The announcement was made in Dubai.
O’Connor held talks with the Minister of State for Foreign Trade Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi and with Minister of State for International Cooperation Reem Al Hashimy during his visit.
“I informed my counterpart Dr Thani that New Zealand sees very good reason to explore areas of mutual interest and strengthen our understanding of the benefits of a CEPA,” Damien O’Connor said.
“The UAE is a significant trading partner for New Zealand, with exports approaching $1 billion per annum. It’s also a hub for New Zealand Inc operations into the region and a key component of New Zealand’s air connectivity to the Middle East and beyond.”
Bearing in mind the powerful case for reducing our economic reliance on China, any pickup in trade with UAE would have to be substantial.
New Zealand annual exports to China total $21 billion or so, comprising $20.04 billion in goods and $3.4 billion in services
O’Connor said the UAE has been negotiating CEPAs with a range of its trading partners in recent years and proposed we also consider such an agreement. It was raised most recently when I met Minister of State Reem Al Hashimy during her visit to New Zealand earlier this year.
“There is also considerable potential for our exporters in such a trade agreement to enhance bilateral cooperation across a range of important areas, including agriculture, services, government procurement, sustainability and reducing non-tariff barriers.
“The prospect of a New Zealand-United Arab Emirates CEPA would send an important signal about the value we place on building strong rules-based trade architecture,” Damien O’Connor said.
UAE is host of the World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference 13 in February 2024.
Damien O’Connor also travelled to Saudi Arabia on 29 – 30 August for trade-focussed discussions with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) General Secretary Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, the Saudi Minister for Commerce Majid bin Abdullah Al Qasabi and agriculture counterpart Minister Abdulrahman Al-Fadhli.
During those meetings, he reaffirmed New Zealand’s ongoing commitment to finalising the New Zealand GCC-FTA and discussed outstanding issues that require resolution before concluding the negotiation.
Statistics New Zealand data shows that Tongans are our fastest-growing Pacific population with over 82,000 calling New Zealand home. Within this group, 40 percent speak the language and only 12 percent under the age of 15 can.
But how many will cast votes?
Tonga Language Week runs from 3 September to 9 September. More information and resources can be found on the Ministry for Pacific Peoples website.
Trade and Export Growth Minister Damien O’Connor gave a clue that he was not at the campaign launch by announcing New Zealand and UAE have begun exploratory discussions on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
The announcement was made in Dubai.
O’Connor held talks with the Minister of State for Foreign Trade Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi and with Minister of State for International Cooperation Reem Al Hashimy during his visit.
“I informed my counterpart Dr Thani that New Zealand sees very good reason to explore areas of mutual interest and strengthen our understanding of the benefits of a CEPA,” Damien O’Connor said.
“The UAE is a significant trading partner for New Zealand, with exports approaching $1 billion per annum. It’s also a hub for New Zealand Inc operations into the region and a key component of New Zealand’s air connectivity to the Middle East and beyond.”
Bearing in mind the powerful case for reducing our economic reliance on China, any pickup in trade with UAE would have to be substantial.
New Zealand annual exports to China total $21 billion or so, comprising $20.04 billion in goods and $3.4 billion in services
O’Connor said the UAE has been negotiating CEPAs with a range of its trading partners in recent years and proposed we also consider such an agreement. It was raised most recently when I met Minister of State Reem Al Hashimy during her visit to New Zealand earlier this year.
“There is also considerable potential for our exporters in such a trade agreement to enhance bilateral cooperation across a range of important areas, including agriculture, services, government procurement, sustainability and reducing non-tariff barriers.
“The prospect of a New Zealand-United Arab Emirates CEPA would send an important signal about the value we place on building strong rules-based trade architecture,” Damien O’Connor said.
UAE is host of the World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference 13 in February 2024.
Damien O’Connor also travelled to Saudi Arabia on 29 – 30 August for trade-focussed discussions with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) General Secretary Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, the Saudi Minister for Commerce Majid bin Abdullah Al Qasabi and agriculture counterpart Minister Abdulrahman Al-Fadhli.
During those meetings, he reaffirmed New Zealand’s ongoing commitment to finalising the New Zealand GCC-FTA and discussed outstanding issues that require resolution before concluding the negotiation.
Latest from the Beehive
3 SEPTEMBER 2023
New Zealand’s Tongan community are coming together to promote language sustainability this week, as Uike Lea Faka-Tonga – Tongan Language Week begins.
1 SEPTEMBER 2023
The Government’s trade agenda took another step forward today with the announcement in Dubai that New Zealand will start exploratory discussions on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Trade and Export Growth Minister Damien O’Connor announced.
Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton
1 comment:
“Within this group, 40 percent speak the language and only 12 percent under the age of 15 can.”
This is a fairly common pattern around the world: immigrant grandparents are most comfortable in the country of origin’s language, parents to varying degrees bilingual, grandchildren more-or-less monolingual in the dominant language of their new country of birth, classmates, shops, media, jobs.
Does the occasional language week have any effect?
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