Freight forwarding organisations CLECAT and FIATA, have renewed their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to reinforce the longstanding cooperation between the two associations.
«The framework for cooperation enables both associations to benefit from agreed actions and initiatives to achieve common objectives to assist our members through the current challenges and disruptions within the supply chain and across multimodal transport operations,» said CLECAT President Willem van der Schalk.
The associations said that it remains important to increase understanding on the crucial role of the freight forwarding industry in ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of global supply chains in the movement of goods in the global economy
«Today, the international freight forwarder’s inherent skills, knowledge and value-added services in the international movement of goods remains pivotal to economic upturn by facilitating trade across borders. This is true not only for large companies but also for SMEs which contribute important benefits to society in all economies,» they said in a joint statement.
The associations will continue to address the issues which are of key importance to their industry, including engagement with policy makers and stakeholders on issues such as trade facilitation, digitalisation, and the key challenges to secure decarbonisation across the transport and logistics industry.
«However, ensuring a level playing field with the other parties in the logistics chain remains equally key. In a rapidly changing business environment, the associations need to respond to the needs of their respective members (and their members) to ensure that supply chains maintain resilience, efficient, effective and seek to promote these requirements towards governmental and non-governmental associations.»
FIATA President Basil Pietersen said: «For many years FIATA and CLECAT have worked collaboratively on agreed international transport, logistics and supply chain management issues, both bodies working with national, regional, and international governmental and non-governmental agencies.
«In all relationships, however, there exists the need to review, revaluate and reinvigorate cooperation. By renewing and strengthening our MoU, we can work more effectively in pursuing our common goals and objectives.» The collaboration between FIATA and CLECAT began in 1999 when they signed their first MoU in Dubai. FIATA (International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations), based in Geneva, is a nongovernmental, membership-based organisation representing freight forwarders in some 150 countries. Brussels-based CLECAT is the leading voice of freight forwarding, logistics and customs services at European level.
