The president of the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA), William Gottlieb, urged participants at the organisation’s World Congress this week, not to waste opportunities presented by the economic downturn.

He called on the more than 600 delegates from 80 member countries of the global forwarding association to instead focus on ways to reposition their business to reduce risk and stimulate growth.

Among the key concerns being discussed at the annual meeting are the increasingly stringent global security regulations – especially from the US which has set a deadline for 100 per cent cargo screening by August next year – and unease over environmental measures.

Another key issue for the forwarders is the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) e-freight initiative. The goal of IATA’s e-freight is to have the cargo handling process free of all paper by 2010, which it says will save the industry more than US$2 billion a year while enhancing data quality and security. A major bone of contention for FIATA are IATA’s e-freight requirements and a perceived lack of consultation with the forwarder body.