Global Electronics Association Launches Global Electronics Policy Council to Unite Industry on Trade, Investment, and Supply Chain Policy
New Council Formalizes Coordinated Global Advocacy Structure to a $6 Trillion Industry at a Critical Moment for Electronics
The Global Electronics Association today announced the formation of the Global Electronics Policy Council (GEPC), a new body uniting leading electronics companies from around the world to advance a coordinated policy agenda across every major region of the electronics supply chain. The GEPC builds on the Association's longstanding electronics industry advocacy work over its nearly 70-year history. For the first time, companies spanning the full electronics value chain - from PCB manufacturers and EMS providers to OEMs, semiconductor suppliers, wire harness, and advanced packaging firms - will have a single, structured forum to translate industry consensus into coordinated government engagement.
GEPC launches against a backdrop of escalating
policy pressure on the electronics industry, including tariff volatility,
export controls, and competing domestic investment mandates. The Global
Electronics Association's own trade flows research underscores the urgency:
global electronics trade totaled $4.5 trillion in
2023, with supply chains more globally interdependent than any other industry.
That interdependence makes coordinated advocacy not just useful, but essential.
"No single company or country can
navigate this environment alone," said Thomas Cetta, Senior Vice
President, Jabil and chairperson of the GEPC. "The Global Electronics
Policy Council gives the industry the structure and discipline to speak with
one voice on the challenges that matter most and to engage governments with the
credibility and accountability that comes from real organizational
commitment."
A Council Built for Action, Not Just Alignment
Unlike informal industry coalitions, the
Global Electronics Policy Council is governed by formal bylaws, a defined
leadership structure, and regional execution arms spanning North America,
Europe, East Asia, and India/Southeast Asia. The Council will produce an
approved global policy agenda and annual advocacy plan, issue formal policy
positions and testimony, and deliver quarterly reporting on government
engagement activity.
Inaugural members include AT&S, Flex,
Jabil, Plexus, TSMC, and TTM Technologies representing
a deliberately balanced cross-section of the electronics value chain.
A Clear and Ambitious Policy Framework
The Council's advocacy will be organized
around five priorities drawn from the Global Electronics Association's 2026
Policy Agenda: safeguarding predictable access to global markets; investing in
domestic manufacturing capacity and capability; building robust workforce
pipelines for the electronics industry; supporting industry-led technical and
sustainability standards while rightsizing regulation; and accelerating
technology leadership through collaborative R&D. Regional councils will
execute against this global framework.
"The GEPC reinforces an essential aspect of our industry: a strong, connected global electronics manufacturing community," said Chris Mitchell, VP Global Government Relations, Global Electronics Association. "This Council will advance a policy agenda that strengthens supply-chain resilience, accelerates innovation, and secures trusted access to global markets for the 3,200+ member companies."