AUSTRALIAN Trade Commission (Austrade) managing director, Charles Jamieson, has appointed Craig Symon as general manager of the Export Finance Assistance Programs.
Mr Symon will be responsible for the management of the Export Market Development Grant (EMDG) program and related Austrade-managed loan port-folios, a role Mr Jamieson described as being one of the Commission’s most critical.
“The EMDG Scheme directly assists Australian businesses to overcome some of the difficulties experienced in financing export market development by reimbursing up to 50 per cent of eligible export promotional expenses,” Mr Jamieson said.
“In the financial year 1999-00, grants were distributed to 3,000 exporters including 700 exporters who entered the scheme for the first time.
“These businesses, two-thirds of which had turnovers of less than $5 million, generated more than $4.5 billion and the estimated number of jobs attributable to exports generated by EMDG recipients is now in the region of 54,000.”
Prior to his appointment, Mr Symon was general manager of corporate and legal affairs, in Austrade’s Corporate and Government group.
