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Consider South Australia

By Dinah S. Ventura

08/06/2008

There’s more to the great continent of Australia than Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and the Gold Coast.

Little do we know that Adelaide, capital city of South Australia, has been rated as “Australia’s top destination for business and travel, conventions and seminars (Economist Intelligence Unit’s Business Trip Index, 2006), and as one of the world’s top six most liveable cities (Economist Intelligence Unit’s Liveability Survey, 2007).”

The state makes up about 13 percent of Australia’s land area. It has a population of about 1.6 million, with about 1.1 million living in Adelaide. Its summer season is from December to February with an average temperature of 28 degrees Centigrade. Winter is from June to August (16 degrees C).

In a world that is rapidly shrinking, people are constantly moving around, trying to find the best place for them to live and work. Filipinos, in particular, are always on the lookout for opportunities outside the country, especially in these economically challenging times.

While Australia is one of the top choices globally for those looking for opportunities to work, study or build a life, not many know that there are other areas in this country with as much potential for both settler or traveler.

“South Australia has not been able to rise above the hubbub about the larger Australian states, but in the past years it has been steadily growing,” said the Hon. Kevin Foley, South Australia’s Deputy Premier and Treasurer and Minister for Industry and Trade, who was in the country in early July to promote South Australian opportunities for trade and labor.

“My primary objective is to promote and strengthen cooperation between South Australia and the Republic of the Philippines on labor, employment and human resource development,” he said.

Foley said the South Australian mission will be assessing local skills, particularly in the building and motor/metal trades, and investigating whether Australia’s strict immigration requirements can be met through competitive arrangements around appropriate skills training and mutual recognition of accreditation.

The Philippines now represents South Australia’s sixth largest source market for settler arrivals, many of whom are helping to ease demand for trade skills at a time. South Australia is experiencing historic low levels of unemployment.

During Foley’s visit, it was revealed that South Australia will be hiring some 300,000 workers from the Philippines in the next 10 years. He cited the significant growth of South Asutralia’s mining industry, for instance, as well as other key areas like defense, electronics and information technology. They are looking for a highly skilled workforce.

“We aim to put (South Australia) in the map. We are open for business. We are growing dynamically. We are opening ourselves to the world,” said Foley. “There is a very strong and active Filipino community in Australia. We are hoping it will get larger.”

Describing the quality of life in South Australia as “ideal for families” with a “higher standard of living at a lower cost,” Foley also noted that agriculture is another strong industry there. Food, including seafood, meat, wheat, dairy, fruit and vegetables, is one of the state’s largest export earners.

East Asia receives the bulk of its exports at 38.2 percent, according to unpublished data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Adelaide is home to three great universities, including Carnegie Mellon, which offers US degrees; Cranfield (UK); and Ballarat. This year, an estimated 25,300 overseas students will be hosted by South Australia.

Wine is a major export of South Australia, the country’s wine capital. Australian wines are described as “honest and full-bodied” by wine experts. The advantage of wines from this great continent is that they are not developed within the bounds of traditional wine-making, so that vintners are able to explore new ways to make wine even better.

South Australia’s wine regions are among its top tourist attractions. Also worth a visit are the rugged outback, the pristine beaches and, of course, the thriving city of Adelaide.

With its booming economy, dynamic industries, natural beauty and warm and engaging people, South Australia indeed offers “a brilliant blend” of lifestyle and opportunity.