[Image above] Example of rare earth oxides, clockwise from top center: praseodymium, cerium, lanthanum, neodymium, samarium, and gadolinium. Many governments around the world are implementing new programs to ensure a secure supply to these materials and other critical resources. Credit: Peggy Greb, USDA-ARS
Supply chains have been top of mind for governments during the last few years as the COVID-19 pandemic, extreme weather events, and war impacted the global transport of goods. And only a few weeks into 2024, supply chains are again grabbing headlines as hundreds of ships detour an extra 4,000 miles around Africa to avoid drone and missile attacks in the Suez Canal.
In response to these global transport disruptions, many governments are implementing new programs to ensure continued and secure access to critical resources, including several in the past few months. Learn about some of these recently implemented programs in the sections below.
US: Dozens of new actions aim to strengthen domestic supply chains
In November 2023, the White House issued a fact sheet announcing almost 30 new actions the Biden–Harris administration is taking to strengthen U.S. supply chains.
Included in these actions is the creation of the Council on Supply Chain Resilience. This Cabinet-level council, co-chaired by the National Security Advisor and National Economic Advisor, formalizes and expands on the Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force, which was created in 2021 to resolve short-term supply and demand discontinuities.
The Council on Supply Chain Resilience brings together more than a dozen of the nation’s top federal officials directly involved in industrial policy. One of the Council’s tasks will be to conduct a quadrennial supply chain review. The first review, due by Dec. 31, 2024, will update criteria on industries, sectors, and products defined as critical to national and economic security.
In addition to the Council, several new Centers to monitor existing and emerging supply chain risks were announced. For example, the Department of Commerce’s Supply Chain Center is designed to be the analytic engine for supply chain resilience policy action within the U.S. government. It will integrate industry expertise and data analytics to develop innovative supply chain risk assessment tools.
On the other hand, the Department of Homeland Security’s Supply Chain Resilience Center will collaborate with the private sector to better secure U.S. supply chains. The Center plans to host at least two table-top exercises in 2024 to test the resiliency of critical cross-border supply chains with other U.S. federal agencies, foreign governments, and industry partners.
Also coming up in 2024 is the new Supply Chain Data and Analytics Summit, convened by the Department of Commerce. In addition to gathering expert input on supply chain risk assessment models and tools, the summit will assess data availability, utility, and limitations and consider actions to improve data flows.
Learn more about the almost 30 new actions in the video below.
EU: Critical Raw Materials Act aims to reduce reliance on China
In November 2023, the European Council and the European Parliament reached a provisional agreement on the Critical Raw Materials Act.
Proposed by the European Commission in March 2023, the Critical Raw Materials Act is one of the flagship legislative initiatives of the Green Deal Industrial Plan, which was announced in February 2023. It aims to reduce reliance on China for the minerals essential to emerging green and digital technologies.
The provisional agreement kept the overall objectives of the original proposal but strengthened several elements, for example, by adding aluminum to the list of strategic raw materials. The act is expected to be finalized and go into effect in early 2024.
Learn more about the Critical Raw Materials Act in the video below.
UK: Critical Imports and Supply Chains Strategy aims to secure flow of critical imports
On Jan. 17, 2024, the U.K. government announced the launch of its new Critical Imports and Supply Chains Strategy.
This strategy builds on several recent programs, specifically the Integrated Review Refresh, advanced manufacturing plan, and the semiconductors, batteries, and critical minerals strategies. It sets out how the U.K. government will work with business and international partners across five priorities to enable the efficient and reliable flow of critical imports.
- Making the U.K. government a center of excellence for supply chain analysis and risk assessment.
- Removing critical import barriers to support the U.K.’s business-friendly environment.
- Building the U.K.’s response to global supply chain shocks.
- Ensuring the U.K. can adapt to long-term trends.
- Expanding collaboration between government, business, and academia.
To achieve these priorities, the U.K. government will establish the Critical Imports Council, which will give companies and government officials a platform through which to collaboratively identify import risks and develop action plans.
With supply chain disruptions expected to continue in 2024, many more governments will likely release resiliency plans in the coming months. Though the long-term effects must wait to be seen, the future global supply chain network will undoubtedly look different from the way it does now.