Page 2989 - Week 08 - Thursday, 15 August 2019
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opportunities. As part of this strategy, we are providing direct investment, as well as policy and other enabling support to key growth industries in the territory.
To support this, we have committed nearly $12 million over the next four years to a series of programs. This will achieve our economic diversification outcomes through close collaboration with industry and the tertiary education institutions to attract investment in key sectors. These include the space industry, defence, cybersecurity, renewables and agricultural technology.
We are seeking to further develop and create awareness of our thriving innovation ecosystem to support start-ups and high-growth potential businesses in accelerating their growth. We are supporting Indigenous business development. We are building our local export capability by helping local small and medium businesses to get into the export market, to help them to be export market ready.
We are promoting export development, investment attraction and trade mission support, working with the office of international engagement, delivering on the territory’s international engagement strategy. We are supporting innovative projects like the CANdrive automated vehicle trial, the CBRfree wi-fi network, and a range of new projects around smart city technologies, including facilitating a whole-of-government response to telecommunications carriers’ plans for the rollout of 5G technology in Canberra.
I can advise the Assembly that the ACT government has partnered with Austrade to co-fund a TradeStart adviser position to deliver export advisory services and to provide access to Austrade’s extensive offshore networks and resources that will assist local businesses to develop international markets.
We have also partnered with Austrade to have a specific ACT in-market representative in Singapore to promote trade and education opportunities and to enhance foreign investment attraction outcomes for the territory. This position is embedded within Austrade in Singapore and will provide services to our local businesses to help them generate economic outcomes and support the ACT’s international engagement into Singapore and South-East Asia.
We continue to work to build Canberra’s reputation as an innovation powerhouse. That is why this budget commits a further $5 million to continue our support for the CBR Innovation Network. The network has grown to become a critical connecting element of our city’s innovation ecosystem, bringing government, research partners and industry together to drive innovation and support entrepreneurs, start-ups and high-growth businesses.
The network delivers and facilitates a range of programs and services aimed at supporting and enabling entrepreneurs and helps them to attract venture capital through programs like idea to impact, innovation connect and the GRIFFIN accelerator.
I can advise the Assembly that the CBR Innovation Network now reaches a community of over 17,000. Last year 50 small and medium-size start-ups engaged
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