A Trading Nation: progress review 2022

4. Next Steps on ATN Delivery

This review details the significant progress made in delivering ATN and the impact this has had in supporting business to grow their exports. The next phase of ATN delivery will build on the work done so far across existing actions, while ensuring we have the flexibility to introduce additional actions to reflect changes in the trading environment.

Key upcoming activity includes work on:

• Skills for Exporting, to ensure it reflects the needs of exporters following EU Exit, and reflects emerging offers of support from partner organisations.
• Ensuring the criteria and definitions within our segmented model of export support continue to capture both existing and emerging export growth potential, aligned to NSET and taking account of economic and trading challenges and opportunities, driving the support and focus we provide to markets and sub sectors.
• Developing a consistent and sustainable approach to trade missions and overseas ministerial visits that is mindful of our net zero obligations and the Vision for Trade.
• Continuing to grow the breadth and diversity of our business networks, including targeted expansion of the GlobalScot network in priority markets and sub-sectors, and the number of exporters that can directly access their expertise and advice.
• Embedding Vision for Trade commitments into our evaluation of priority markets, and to deepen our knowledge of the long term trends in these priority markets.
• Emerging sectoral priorities being driven by the transition to net zero, including the Hydrogen Action Plan and its related Hydrogen Sector Export Plan currently being developed, and our responsibilities under NSET to find and support new markets for our products and services across the sectors that will drive net zero.
• Sharpening the focus of our understanding of the opportunities in "continental" sized economies through development of sub-national plans in particular for the USA as resources permit.
• Refining and defining our approach to engagement with emerging markets in our 2^nd tier of ATN priority markets.
• Identifying major international events over the next three years that we wish to target for major Showcasing Scotland promotional activities, including Osaka Expo 2025
• Re-focusing our work on leveraging DIT support for companies to ensure it complements existing trade support options for companies.
• Ensuring exporters are aware of the increasing net zero considerations of consumers and businesses.
• Working towards addressing key NSET ambitions, such as talent attraction, by using our global networks effectively to deliver against this ambition.

Finally, we committed to implementing a robust evaluation of our ATN activities to measure our impact and return on investment over the last three years. This process is well underway with the management information review and consultation near completion. We have also commenced the next stage and recently awarded a tender to Aston University, who will carry out the qualitative survey and an economic impact assessment, to identify the value and contribution of our export support to businesses and Scotland's export performance. This is targeted for completion in 2022.