AUCKLAND, NZ: TradeWindow (NZX: TWL) is collaborating with the Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) to build trade digitisation capability within New Zealand’s export community.

TradeWindow CEO, AJ Smith says, “This agreement is part of TradeWindow’s desire to give back to, and help to upskill, trade stakeholders, with the scholarships on offer focused on building capability within the export sector.

New Zealand’s economy is heavily reliant on international trade, with its export industry having been worth over $77.2 billion to the economy in 2021.

“It’s important to us that we give back to our export community. This partnership is an exciting development for both sides because it not only enhances EMA’s capability around providing value-add services to its exporter members, but also exporters in the manufacturing sector that TradeWindow has not traditionally worked with in the past,” said Mr Smith.

Food and fibre exports alone leapt to a record $53.3 billion for the year ending June 2022, indicating the scale of exports from New Zealand’s shores and the potential gains that upskilling the sector could result in for the country.

The partnership agreement is threefold, seeing TradeWindow provide 30 scholarships per annum for Export New Zealand Northern’s members to attend TradeWindow Academy; a reseller agreement of TradeWindow Origin, ExpressDocs, and Assure+; and sponsorship of the EMA.

Founded in December 2018, TradeWindow is an NZX-listed software company that provides digital solutions for exporters, importers, freight forwarders, and customs brokers to drive productivity, increase connectivity, and enhance visibility.

From this month, members of Export New Zealand Northern will be eligible to receive one of 30 scholarships on offer to upskill via TradeWindow Academy’s Export Document Specialist training programme.

The programme aims to equip those working in the exporter sector with the knowledge and skills to become an export documentation specialist, leading to teams working more efficiently with fewer errors, and individuals gaining targeted skills and knowledge to help advance their career in export-related fields.

The training programme runs over six weeks and is comprised of instructor-led classes, e-learning modules, and assessments.

TradeWindow Origin, a solution that issues Certificates of Origin under the delegated authority of the New Zealand Customs Service, has resulted in huge time savings for customers that have implemented the solution into their operations. For auto-approved goods, TradeWindow Origin offers a 24/7 service.

EMA CEO, Brett O’Riley noted, “The pressing demands on exporters is high, given the amount of change in recent times requiring new ways of working and a more agile response to market. We see the EMA/ExportNZ Certificate of Origin service, powered by TradeWindow Origin, as fundamental for exporters to work within on the timeframes lines they need to with their distributors and for their customers”.

The EMA is New Zealand’s largest business service organisation dedicated to helping people and businesses succeed and grow. It offers advice, learning, advocacy and support for more than 7,100 businesses as members. The EMA is part of the BusinessNZ Network and its territory spans the upper North Island. The EMA also offers many of its services nationally to member businesses, and through its partners. https://www.ema.co.nz