Willox calls for digitalisation focus at G20 meeting

Ai Group Chief Executive and outgoing President of the Global Business Coalition, Innes Willox, will call on G20 leaders to invest more in cyber security capabilities to ensure we build resilient and inclusive Global Value Chains.

Mr Willox is Australia’s representative to the Business 20 (B20) meeting in New Delhi which is being held ahead of next month’s G20 meeting.

He will speak during a panel session on Friday 25 August on the importance of embracing digitalisation.

Mr Willox will tell the B20 business leaders that. “Resilient transport links will be digital. This will help us predict and prepare for disruptions rather than react and regret. But in embracing digitalisation we need to avoid the risk of entrenching the digital divide. We need to bring current and potential suppliers along the journey with us.

“The other potential risk is cyber security. As supply chains are digitised, the amount of commercial data we collect, and the risk of its damage, loss or theft, will grow exponentially. Digital supply chains will become an ever-more attractive target for cyber criminals.

“This leads to a new type of trade disruption with cyber-attacks afflicting fragile global supply chains. It is imperative we harden our supply chains’ cyber defences now, before the wave of digitisation fully crashes over us.

“Current regulation is centred on protecting consumer data, which, while important, will not necessarily provide the protection or capability that businesses will need to protect themselves, their suppliers or their customers.

“The G20 should seize the opportunity to create a step change through regulatory coherence, establishing digital infrastructure and driving technology adoption to accelerate cross-border trade and efficiency,” Mr Willox said.

Included on the B20 panel on Friday with Mr Willox are:

Borge Brende, President, World Economic Forum, Switzerland (since 2017), Former Minister, Norwegian Foreign Affairs, Trade and Industry.

Robert Maersk Uggla, Chairman of the Board, A.P. Moller – Maersk, Denmark

The fifth generation of the Maersk family to lead the company.

Francisco Gomes Neto, Chief Executive Officer, Embraer, Brazil (since 2019)

20 years of CEO experience leading companies in Brazil and the United States.

Raj Subramaniam, Chief Executive Officer, FedEx, USA. Serves on the board of directors of the Procter & Gamble. He also serves on the boards of directors of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s China Center Advisory Board, FIRST, U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum, and the U.S.-China Business Council, and as a member of the U.S.-India CEO Forum. In February 2023, Subramaniam was appointed by U.S. President Joe Biden to the President’s Export Council.

Moderator: Mallika Srinivasan, Chairman & Managing Director, Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd.

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