A world first centre dedicated to accelerating the digitalisation of international trade is to be set up in the North East.
The Centre for Digital Trade and Innovation will be based in the Tees Valley and follows a number of significant public and private organisations to establish a presence in the region, including the Treasury and the Department for International Trade.
The centre – which will be coordinated by the International Chamber of Commerce UK and supported by the Tees Valley Mayor and Combined Authority – has been set up in response to the Government’s ambition for the UK to have an open trading system with the rest of the world.
Read more: Find more deals stories here
Working closely with the Teesside Freeport, it will identify barriers and drive innovation at scale across the country’s trading system. The aim is to make the UK the first country in the world to establish the private sector infrastructure to lead research and pilot and test new approaches to trade.
The centre will bring together industry experts and thinkers to work alongside Government to nurture a pipeline of opportunities to further digital trade growth.
Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen said: “Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool now have a chance like never before to throw open their doors to international trade and take advantage of all the opportunities of a truly global Britain. This is thanks in no small part to the Teesside Freeport, the UK’s largest and first operational Freeport.
“To make sure our SMEs - the lifeblood of our economy - can feel the full benefit, helping them to grow and create jobs, we need to cut red tape. Digitalising trade, with a joined-up approach, will reduce these barriers and make it easier, faster and smoother than ever for them to do business.
“We’re delighted to be working alongside the Centre for Digital Trade and Innovation and feeding into their work. It’s once again showing how our region is thinking outside of the box, at the forefront of nationally significant strategies paving the way to transform trade in the UK.”
International Chamber of Commerce UK secretary general Chris Southworth said: “The centre is an enormous milestone in making trade cheaper, faster, simpler and more sustainable. It will establish the capability we need to support the Government’s ambition to be a global leader on digital trade and help us transform the UK trading system, bring it into the 21st century. For the first time, we will be able to connect initiatives and stakeholders and drive digital transformation at scale both across the UK and through our relationships with overseas partners.”
Director general of the Institute of Export and International Trade Marco Forgione said: “The launch of the centre is a major step forward for trade in the UK and beyond. Digitalisation offers the prospect of huge benefits to traders and consumers. Training is the key to unlocking those benefits – especially for SMEs - and we are looking to forward to helping traders unlock them.”
