Australia’s pandemic-hit farms to reach out to Southeast Asia for labour: Bloomberg
Australia is looking to recruit Southeast Asian farm workers as the pandemic and a new free-trade deal with the UK exacerbates labour shortages in the nation’s 66 billion AUD (51 billion USD)-a-year agriculture industry, Bloomberg reported.
Foreign workers pick tomatoes on a farm in Australia. (Photo: Reuters)
Hanoi (VNA) – Australia is looking to recruitSoutheast Asian farm workers as the pandemic and a new free-trade deal with theUK exacerbates labour shortages in the nation’s 66 billion AUD (51 billionUSD)-a-year agriculture industry, Bloomberg reported.
The government aims to offer three-year working visas bythe end of the year to citizens from the 10 ASEAN countries, Australia’sAgriculture Minister David Littleproud told reporters in Canberra on June 16.
With Australians reluctant to pick up what is oftenconsidered to be strenuous manual labour, reliance on foreigners has long beena crux to an industry that has seen a shrinking and aging local workforce.
The Australian government has attempted to attractbackpackers with the offer of a visa extension on the completion of a longerfarm stint. Still, their number has plunged from 160,000 pre-pandemic to lessthan 40,000 as the nation’s borders were closed to almost all non-residents,leaving some goods not sown or left to rot unpicked.
Labour shortages were flagged by the government as acontinuing “vulnerability” for the industry as the pandemic extends through2021, with Australia unlikely to loosen its strict border controls until wellinto next year.
With global food price inflation already tracking higheras farm supplies tighten, any hiccup in the supply chain could hit householdbudgets hard. The Bloomberg Agriculture Spot Index, which tracks key farmproducts, surged last month to reach the highest level since 2012./.
Indonesia will conduct a worker-exchange programme with Australia to boost its human resources, a senior government official announced just days after the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA) entered into force.
Participants to the virtual ASEAN-Australia Ministerial Meeting on September 10 shared the view that the ASEAN-Australia dialogue relationship has made strong progress since its establishment in 1974, and positively contributed to regional peace and stability.
Australia said it will offer the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) a 60-million-USD package under the Partnerships for Recovery programme to support the region in COVID-19 related health security, stability and economic recovery.
The Australia Renewable Energy Agency has granted aid worth 1 million AUD (750,000 USD) for a new-generation solar cell development project of a research team headed by Vietnamese national Dr. Nguyen Trong Hieu from the Australia National University (ANU).
Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison on June 10 agreed to work towards a travel bubble, aiming to resume safe travel between the countries in the coming time.
The article stressed that throughout his revolutionary career, the founder of modern Vietnam consistently regarded the revolutionary press as a vital part of the Vietnamese Party’s and nation’s revolutionary struggle.
Pichai said the trade talks with the US are important and need to move forward professionally, without regard for any political changes in Thailand, believing that Thailand has clear principles, guidelines and procedures in place.
The tax adjustment supports the Malaysian Government’s strategy to reduce reliance on foreign food supply chains and to assist domestic farmers, a finance official has said.
The proposed venue is located in the Chatuchak area of Bangkok, featuring eight public sites, including Krungthep Aphiwat Central Terminal and several nearby parks.
Connectivity is expected to improve further with the completion of the fifth Laos–Thailand Friendship Bridge by the end of 2025, facilitating logistics and agricultural exports to Vietnam, Thailand, and China.
Two naval gunboats intercepted a fishing vessel carrying 1.5 tonnes of methamphetamine hydrochloride off the coast of the main island of Luzon just before dawn, in a joint operation with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
In the today context of socio-economic development and growth, the professionalism of Vietnam’s revolutionary journalists continues to rise, guided by exemplary mastery of new information technologies and the modernisation of their founding principles to preserve the enduring values of revolutionary journalism.
Thai Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce Vuttikrai Leewiraphan Thailand's formal proposal will be substantial enough for the US to consider further detailed negotiations. He hoped for a tariff rate not exceeding 10% and suggested that the US might extend the negotiation period if an agreement is not reached by the July 8 deadline.
Organised by the Ministry of Culture and the Association of Thai Silk & Culture Promotions, the event honors Her Majesty the Queen on her 47th birthday anniversary and promotes Thai craftsmanship on an international stage.
Prensa Latina's recent article on Vietnam’s assurance of smooth and effective transition to a leaner structure highlighted Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s latest directions on implementing 28 resolutions regarding the decentralisation and delegation of authority.
The lab focuses on four key thematic areas: energy transition and green innovation, sustainable agriculture, circular economy and sustainable cities, and nature-based solutions and biodiversity.
The key content of the document titled "Accelerating Innovative Strategies: Addressing the OOSCY Challenges" will be refined further in a seminar preceding the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur this October.
This follows Telegram’s serious failure to address the content that has been repeatedly reported to them, despite various efforts of negotiation and cooperation made by MCMC, it said.
Efforts to empower women must transcend dialogue and translate into concrete commitments, including corporate pledges and government partnerships, according to the spouse of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
The forum featured two in-depth discussion sessions, engaging representatives from governments, think tanks, and businesses from both ASEAN and China, on how to forge closer ties for a common future.
The new FIFA Hub in Jakarta will not only support football development in Indonesia but also serve as a coordination centre for 21 football associations across Southeast and East Asia.
Minister Counselor Nguyen Hoang Nguyen reaffirmed Vietnam’s principled and consistent stance on the Palestine issue, calling for an immediate and lasting ceasefire across the entire Gaza Strip.
PM Anwar Ibrahim affirmed the determination of Malaysia, as ASEAN Chair for 2025, to utilise all viable regional mechanisms of the bloc and work with partners to de-escalate violence and restore a peace process led by Myanmar.
Talking to the Vietnam News Agency on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Vietnam’s Revolutionary Press Day (June 21, 1925–2025), Nikulina, who is also a veteran journalist of Russia’s Sputnik News, emphasised the vital role of mainstream journalism in defending the truth and maintaining public trust.
Foreign workers pick tomatoes on a farm in Australia. (Photo: Reuters) 
