Joint Press Release on the Inaugural FIT Partnership Ministerial Meeting

The Future of Investment and Trade (FIT) Partnership held its inaugural Ministerial Meeting on 18 November 2025 in Singapore, bringing together Ministers and representatives from the FIT Partnership countries and 6 observer countries. The World Trade Organization Director-General Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala also participated virtually in the meeting. 

The FIT Partnership was launched on 16 September 2025 to promote open and fair trade, support inclusive growth, and address contemporary trade challenges. As a principles-based and non-binding grouping, the FIT Partnership aims to strengthen the rules-based trading system through practical and solution-focused initiatives in areas such as supply chain resilience, non-tariff trade barriers, and the facilitation of investment in the adoption and integration of emerging technologies. 

During the meeting, the FIT Partnership welcomed new member countries Paraguay and Malaysia, joining existing members Brunei, Chile, Costa Rica, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Rwanda, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and Uruguay. This brings the membership of the FIT Partnership to 16 countries.  

The inaugural FIT Partnership Ministerial Meeting also welcomed representatives from non-member countries including Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Peru, Philippines and Thailand who participated in the meeting to better understand the FIT Partnership and its initiatives.

The Ministers reaffirmed the FIT Partnership’s commitment to open and fair trade and launched the following initiatives to address emerging challenges and opportunities in trade and investment: 

1. 13 Ministers from Brunei, Chile, Costa Rica, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Singapore, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, and Uruguay issued a Ministerial Declaration on Supply Chain Resilience to enhance cooperation and coordination to identify or mitigate ongoing or imminent major supply chain risks and disruptions of shared concerns. This will allow swifter and more meaningful responses to major supply chain risks and disruptions.  The FIT Partnership will build on this declaration to further strengthen cooperation and coordination on issues relating to supply chain resilience; 
2. launched a workstream to advance digital and paperless trade. The workstream will promote the adoption of international standards and legislation, to facilitate the use and exchange of digital trade documentation;
3. launched a workstream on strengthening the rules-based trading system. The workstream will incubate solutions on contemporary trade challenges and be a pathfinder for reform to existing trade structures; and
4. launched a new workstream on leveraging technology to address current challenges in trade. This initiative will provide small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) specialising in trade technology with the opportunity to test and refine their innovative solutions for scale-up. 

Looking ahead, the FIT Partnership will maintain its focus on having real-world impact and amplifying the collective voice of small and medium, trade-dependent countries to champion open and fair trade. As it continues to expand, the Partnership will continue to invite additional countries willing to uphold its principles.

Annex

Future of Investment and Trade Partnership

Declaration on Supply Chain Resilience: Best Practices in Response to Major Supply Chain Risks and Disruptions

We, as Ministers:

RECOGNISING the importance of stable, transparent and resilient supply chains and that major supply chain disruptions can compromise access to essential goods, impacting inter alia economic security and stability, public health, food security, and the green and digital transitions;

AFFIRMING our objective to support inclusive growth through enhancing access to resources and technology;

AFFIRMING that open markets, a strong rules-based multilateral trading system, including compliance with those rules, contribute to supply chain resilience and to addressing major supply chain disruptions;

RECOGNIZING that strengthening the Participants’ development of local economies and participation in global and regional value chains contributes to enhancing the resilience of supply chains;

AFFIRMING the Participants’ intent to maintain open, diversified, transparent, competitive and resilient supply chains, especially during periods of supply chain disruption;
 
ACKNOWLEDGING the importance of refraining from adopting trade-restrictive measures including export restrictions, tariffs and non-tariff barriers;

RECOGNISING that increased cooperation in international trade policy can contribute to successfully addressing major supply chain risks and disruptions;

AFFIRMING that major supply chain risks and disruptions call for global, coordinated and informed responses;

UNDERSTANDING that supply chain risks and disruptions may be due to, among other causes, pandemics and regional epidemics, weather events, disasters declared or recognized by a central, regional, or local government, cyber incidents, logistical interruptions, insufficient supply of raw materials or components, bottlenecks, or armed conflict;

DETERMINED to work closely to identify and address major supply chain risks and disruptions;

ACKNOWLEDGING the key role that the stakeholders could play in the promotion of supply chain resilience, including the development and management of supply chains;

DESIRING that this initiative supports the global response to major supply chain risks and disruptions.

Declare:

1. For the purpose of this declaration:
   1. Participant means a country whose Minister has endorsed this declaration.
   2. Major supply chain risk means the risk of any substantial interruption, delay, or degradation in the production, transportation, distribution, or availability of essential goods.
   3. Major supply chain disruption means any substantial interruption, delay, or degradation in the production, transportation, distribution, or availability of essential goods.
   4. Essential good means the goods a Participant deems critical to ensuring its economic security and stability, protecting its public health and safety, safeguarding its food security, or the continuity of its vital societal functions, and which, if unavailable or severely restricted, would pose a significant risk to its economy, public well-being, green and digital transitions, or the effective functioning of its institutions.
2. We affirm the Participants’ objective to enhance cooperation and coordination to identify and mitigate ongoing or imminent major supply chain risks and disruptions of shared concerns.
3. To that purpose, we intend to regularly exchange views on supply chains of essential goods, including aspects related to local production conditions, with a view to identifying, preventing and mitigating major supply chain risks and disruptions, and to share information and experiences on the effectiveness of the Participants’ respective approaches to addressing major supply chain risks and disruptions.
4. In the event of major supply chain disruptions, the Participants endeavour to, inter alia,:
   1. Where appropriate, reduce or eliminate customs duties on the import and export of relevant essential goods, consistent with their respective international obligations;
   2. Refrain from applying unnecessary export prohibitions of, or restrictions on exports of, relevant essential goods;
   3. Intensify consultations with a view to removing non-tariff barriers on relevant essential goods; 
   4. Expedite and facilitate the flow and transit of relevant essential goods through their respective sea and air ports, consistent with their respective domestic laws;
   5. Apply measures in response to major supply chain disruptions, or measures that may have significant impact on the trade of relevant essential goods, in a transparent manner; and
   6. Where possible, facilitate real-time information sharing and coordination on joint response plans and mitigation strategies, collaborate on studies, data sharing and risk assessments, and as well as report on the restoration of supply chains to normal operations.
5. If major supply chain risks are identified, we intend for the Participants to consider the application of the non-binding practices described in paragraph 4 to mitigate these risks.
6. We intend that each Participant nominates a supply chain national contact point. The FITP coordinating Participant will maintain a list of national contact points and their respective contact details, which can be used, inter alia, to facilitate information exchange and coordination during a major supply chain disruption or if a major supply chain risk is identified.
7. We confirm that, if they deem it necessary, the Participants may hold consultations with businesses and other relevant stakeholders to facilitate cooperation and coordination on trade policy approaches to mitigate major supply chain risks and disruptions, and enhance their effectiveness.
8. We confirm that this declaration does not create legal rights or obligations under international law.