International Solidarity

The past weeks of global pandemic have seen a strange return to the raising of ‘borders’ throughout Europe and further afield, as countries and economies have struggled to find a balance between keeping trade and supply chains open, and protecting their people and goods in the name of public health. However, societally, the pandemic has exposed great solidarity at national and global level, demonstrating how international co-operation, human assistance and kindness can be transformative and powerful tools in the face of a global crisis.

In difficult times, the soft power of diplomacy is critical. It is important to acknowledge the role of the Department of Foreign Affairs, and in particular the Irish Embassies and Consulates abroad, whose teams have worked tirelessly to repatriate our fellow Irish citizens since the crisis began. Over 5,000 Irish citizens have been brought home to Ireland in the past month alone and in the past weeks Irish missions abroad and consular teams have helped Irish citizens return from places as far flung as Vietnam and Cambodia, New Zealand, Nigeria and South Africa.

Ireland is part of global village and our interdependence has never been more evident. In strong recognition of the importance of pan-international collaboration, Simon Coveney, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade has not only committed 10 million euro to the UN’s Covid 19 humanitarian appeal, but has also announced that Ireland plans to quadruple its normal annual financial contribution to the World Health Organisation (WHO) to €9.5 million for 2020 after the US suspended their WHO funding contribution.

Ireland’s long-standing international relationships have borne dividends in recent weeks, as evidenced by the extensive public-private collaboration and pro-bono work undertaken to produce, source and hasten the arrival of much needed Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for frontline workers. Cork’s Sister City Shanghai has made generous donations of PPE, as have several other sister cities, Chambers, bi-lateral business organisations and individuals both in China and Ireland. The significance of our international diaspora and their generosity at this time, too, cannot be overstated. The Irish expat community in China raised almost €20,000 for the purchase of PPE for Ireland, and Irish diaspora and community groups in the US are playing their part to raise funding for Irish expats and Irish communities who have been been impacted by Covid 19.

Nurturing and maintaining international relationships requires time, patience and understanding, however if this time is invested, then our international relationships can pay huge dividends and reap rewards.

While international travel has all been put on hold, and is unlikely to resume in the short- or even medium-term, the Chamber continues to support Cork businesses by maintaining communications with our international partners, supporting the exchange of information and advice through our networks, promoting international business partnerships through Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) and supporting exporters with an extensive Certificate of Origin documentation service.

At Chamber CEO level, we are keeping up regular contact with other Chambers around the world, to receive and share learnings and advice to respond to the crisis. The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) together with the WHO are surveying the private sector: the three minute survey is the first global survey of its kind in response to Covid19 to understand how business are responding. It further demonstrates that beyond a medical emergency, businesses play a vital role in responding to its societal and economic impacts.

While many sectors have been extremely hard hit in the last number of months, hospitality and tourism in particular, Enterprise Ireland, has highlighted opportunities for growth in a few core sectors, such as healthcare, pharma, digital health, cybersecurity and medical devices as well as solution providers for retail, business process outsourcing, food production and tools to engage remote teams. The movement of people and products will begin again, but as the fog of crisis lifts, shifts in consumer and business demands are to be anticipated. We have already seen how Cork SMEs have shown that they are flexible and responsive to change, many of whom have already taken advantage of opportunities to deliver customised solutions or pivot into a new sector.

Cork Chamber encourages member companies to stay connected and take advantage of the shift online, to invest and engage in client and customer relationships and to consider fostering international relationships to promote their business. Using this time to invest in research, validate new ideas and analyse competitors will help businesses to be resilient and to prepare for new opportunities as they emerge now and post-crisis, both at home or abroad.

Get in touch to find out how we can support your business to forge international relationships in the future.