“Victorian communities and businesses live along the borders with NSW and South Australia have done it tough in the past year and a half — this team will add further support to help them to navigate the challenges,” Victorian Cross Border Commissioner Luke Wilson said.
“The Border Brokers will work with me to ensure a local understanding of the issues and that these local needs are represented across government.”
The team includes eight brokers who will work in the Hume, Gippsland, Loddon Mallee, Grampians and Barwon South West regions, which have all been impacted by restrictions on their respective borders.
The brokers will be jointly led by Regional Development Victoria and Agriculture Victoria.
This team will ensure locals have a key contact on the ground to advocate on their behalf and will support businesses and industry groups to address issues and challenges.
Border brokers will work across state and local governments and with chambers of commerce, key agricultural stakeholders, industry, regional tourism boards and community groups to identify and triage issues.
The team will work on solutions to challenges such as access to workforce and help to ensure supply of necessary goods and services to local businesses.
Brokers will also be able to connect locals with support that has been provided by the Victorian Government throughout the pandemic.
In addition, brokers will be included in the membership of the Border Representatives Reference Group, which the government established last month.
The group brings together key stakeholders to identify local impacts and challenges experienced by border communities in response to Victorian-NSW border restrictions.
For more information, visit rdv.vic.gov.au
