The GEA agreement combines trade, economic and environmental objectives. It builds on existing cooperation between Australia and Singapore to take action on climate change and strengthen trade and investment in clean energy across our region, the countries said in a joint statement.

Australia and its largest two-way trading partner in Southeast Asia, Singapore, have signed a first-of-its-kind Green Economy Agreement (GEA). The landmark bilateral agreement between the two countries will propel a sustainable future and support Australian businesses to seize economic opportunities presented by the global clean energy transformation.

The agreement will deepen their bilateral partnership through strengthened economic and environmental relations while furthering engagement on existing areas of cooperation, such as their memorandum of understanding on cooperation in low-emissions solutions. The vision is to enhance the livelihood of the communities whilst transitioning to greener economies and addressing the challenges of climate change.

The GEA will deliver on this vision by reducing barriers to the trade in environmental goods and services; fostering convergence on regulations and standards; exploring new opportunities in green growth sectors; adopting environmental measures that facilitate trade and investment in a manner consistent with existing international trade and investment obligations; and ensuring a smooth and inclusive transition into a green economy that creates good jobs for the people.

The Australian government has also announced an initial investment of $19.6 million over four years for new cooperation under the GEA that will support job creation at home and strengthen supply chains, trade and market opportunities.

“Our broader aspiration is for the GEA to serve as a pathfinder that contributes to multilateral and regional policy development by establishing policies, standards and initiatives that will not only create good jobs in green growth sectors, but also strengthen environmental governance and global capacity to address environmental issues, in particular climate change. We seek to do this by exploring creative ways to encourage the adoption of common standards and practices with high environmental integrity, while upholding a rules-based and open trading system,” the statement added.

Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister, Australia, said: “The Green Economy Agreement extends well beyond a simple bilateral trade agreement. This world-first agreement establishes a framework under which our countries can advance work on the clean energy transformation and support businesses and industry. This is a model that will support both Australia and Singapore, and partners in our region to seize the economic opportunities of the global transition to net zero.”

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KD)