What is GIA and how does it work?

Ensuring we have an effective biosecurity system is a joint effort. All New Zealanders – industries, individuals, government, and other organisations – need to work together and jointly take responsibility for the risks they create or are best placed to manage.

It’s for more than just interventions that occur at the border. It includes activities to manage risk offshore and activities past our border to eradicate or manage pests and diseases.

The Government Industry Agreement (GIA) initiative is a partnership between government and industry for improving New Zealand’s biosecurity. It involves working together to plan biosecurity readiness and response activities, and sharing decision-making, as well as costs.

The GIA provides the opportunity for joint decision making of the things that industry says are important. It provides certainty that the things that really matter to industry are being addressed. Better preparedness will result in faster and less costly responses that are more likely to eradicate or control pests and diseases. This will likely also reduce impacts on production and market access.

KVH was the first primary industry to sign the GIA Deed in May 2014. This marked a significant achievement for the kiwifruit industry and government.

The GIA Deed outlines the principles for the partnership and the commitments that each Signatory makes. For example, as a Deed Signatory, KVH negotiates and agrees the priority pests and diseases of most concern to the kiwifruit industry and agrees actions to minimise the risk and impact of an incursion. We work through the details of responses, including roles and responsibilities and cost-sharing.

KVH has been at the forefront of formally developing and finalising these details, known as Operational Agreements (OA). The first OA under GIA was the multi-sector agreement for the management of fruit fly in New Zealand. In March 2017 KVH signed a second agreement, on behalf of the kiwifruit and kiwiberry sectors, to help reduce the damaging impacts of four sector specific threats - Ceratocystis fimbriata, Verticillium Wilt, Psa-non New Zealand strains and Invasive Phytophthoras. A third OA for Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB) was signed in mid-July 2017.

For more information about GIA and how KVH is working with government to fight pest threats, read the feature article in the KVH Annual Report. You can also read more here about KVH readiness and response activities.