FMA is the Canadian member of the Global Shippers Forum (GSF) and participates on the Board of Directors and the Policy Council. GSF and FIATA, the International Federation of Freight Forwarder Associations, have developed and published “A Charter for Protection and Governance of Data in International Trade” . This is not a legal document, but recommends the minimum rights and responsibilities that should be incorporated in Agreements between supply chain stakeholders and providers of digital applications.

The GSF/FIATA news release states as follows.

Shippers and forwarders organisations are calling for improved standards of data protection and confidentiality in digital trading and booking systems.
FIATA, the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations, and the Global Shippers Forum, have jointly issued an agreed Charter for Protection and Governance of Data in International Trade that sets out the minimum arrangements for data security and confidentiality that providers and operators of digital booking and trading platforms should adopt and incorporate in their End-User Agreements (EUAs). Recommendations in the Charter seek to enable a safe and trustworthy environment for conducting business based on a level playing field.