Obstacles for family and household staff still abound in “Safe Havens”.
Deep levels of preparedness are a greater focus.
One of the global trends that has been sped-up by Covid-19 has been a shift of families towards living in “Safe Haven” countries: where the schools are good, knowledge jobs are plentiful, and families can live safely if circumstances become unstable or undesirable at home. Global beneficiaries of this trend have been Australia and New Zealand.
But the coronavirus outbreak has shown that there is a need for logistics and resilience thinking. Students have been caught in transit as countries lock down. Families have been separated. Household staff have been unable to travel.
In response, I-OnAsia has been helping families to build resilience. Globally, but particularly in Australia and New Zealand. In 2019, I-OnAsia acquired OJT Investigations Group, an investigations and security risk management company based on the east coast of Australia, with offices located in the capital centers of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. I-OnAsia’s Chairman Derek Elmer says, “OJT Investigations Group had established a strong brand right across the country. This acquisition strengthened our ability to serve our many Hong Kong & China based clients looking at Australia and New Zealand.”
Oliver Laurence, formerly with OJT and now an I-OnAsia director has been helping a number of global families recently. “Their children are studying and living in Australia. Some of these young people are based on the Gold Coast, studying at Bond & Griffith University with family based in China and Hong Kong, and others in Cairns and Sydney whose family bases are in the USA and Canada.”
If you, or your family need global travel & security planning, I-OnAsia provides retained services to assist in travel planning, security and on-call support 24/7.
+852 9281 9932 – Hong Kong
+1 917 608 3476 – New York
+44 207 117 2609 – London
During the Covid-19 pandemic I-OInAsia has been providing retained services, which have have become more necessary, due to the difficulties of travel and isolation. I-OnAsia provides regular briefings on border closures and local security issues, and offers contact numbers for family to call in case of emergency.
As was demonstrated in our most recent white paper (pictured) authored by I-OnAsia, the aviation industry has been one of the worst hit sectors, with strict travel restrictions put in place by countries receiving people through their international ports. This knock on effect has resulted in airlines cancelling a lot of major routes, and grounding aircraft and their crews until restrictions ease.
Airlines and airports are furiously implementing strategies to reduce the risk of catching Covid-19 during international travel as restrictions begin to ease globally and the need for travel starts to increase gradually.
However, some of I-OnAsia’s global families, whose children study abroad, away from home have had to get their children back into their international university programs as soon as possible to meet strict timetables, upcoming exams and practical components of their courses to ensure they complete their university studies on time. This then means they can return home to their countries of origin to begin their chosen field of expertise in areas like; medicine, dentistry, law and engineering to name just a few.
In recent weeks I-OnAsia’s offices have been planning the return trips of these global students from Canada, finding them safe and secure places to isolate in accordance with government restrictions into countries like Australia, New Zealand and parts of Europe where there are conditions of entry, if travel cannot be avoided for these reasons, and travel granted for study purposes.
I-OnAsia’s extensive network of contacts into governments globally, means that the latest security, travel and quarantine advice can be sought, and the hard questions answered to ensure our clients understand the requirements being placed upon them prior to departure, and ensuring they are happy with the plans and the safety of all those involved through well planned risk assessments which have been designed with safety as a priority.
I-OnAsia’s support helps families to make the right decisions, at the right times. Clients are given guidance on the latest travel information and security guidance.
“The support we have provided thus far has been very much in the planning and execution of travel and security arrangements. We have also been a sounding board to global families who have concerns with travel and security risk” – Oliver Laurence, London
Not only has Covid-19 been a factor in decision making for families needing to travel urgently, but the current global tensions between some countries has also seen some families approach I-OnAsia for their 20 years of in-depth knowledge in the Asia Region and global understanding of security and risk whilst transiting between countries.
Asian families for decades have been sending their children to Australia, Canada and the U.S for the best education they can give them, whilst also experiencing other cultures. In doing so though families want to know that their children are going to be safe and won’t be isolated in times of tension. I-OnAsia has proudly been supporting these families who want the best for their children.
As a parent myself of children that study overseas, I make sure we are there for our clients every step of the way, and if we need to travel with these young people to support them, our team will.” – Derek Elmer, Chairman, I-OnAsia
Wanting to stay ahead of the curve I-OnAsia is retained by global families to provide monthly briefings and security advice on current regional issues which may impact travel back to ports of origin if required at short notice.
With the availability of corporate aircraft to make this happen for our clients we continue to provide peace of mind that if something were to occur we would get loved ones home when called upon at very short notice.
Follow I-OnAsia on our LinkedIn Page here
