Western Economic Diversification Canada | Diversification de l'économie de l'Ouest Canada

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TABLE A:
Summary of WD's Three Strategic Directions
(From the Report on Plans & Priorities)

Innovation:
strengthened western Canadian innovation system

  • Improved business management capabilities of SMEs
  • Improved knowledge infrastructure and capacity
  • More innovative communities
  • Enhanced coordination and alignment of innovation priorities and strategies between federal, provincial and other innovation players

Entrepreneurship:
competitive and expanded business sector in Western Canada.

  • Enhanced technology commercialization and adoption
  • Improved access to financing for SMEs
  • Increased investment in Western Canada
  • Increased participation in international markets

Sustainable Communities:
increased economic activity that improves the competitiveness and the quality of life in western Canadian communities.
  • Greater collaboration and integration among governments and communities
  • Increased economic opportunity and investment within Western Canada's communities
  • Increased participation of Aboriginal people in the economy
  • Enhanced capacity of western Canadian communities to implement strategies that promote sustainable development

Innovation

Strengthening the western Canadian innovation system

Knowledge and innovation form the essential foundation for economic prosperity in the new global economy. As a result, support for innovation has become a central priority for the Government of Canada as a whole. That support reached a new level with the launch of Canada's Innovation Strategy in February 2002. It is a national agenda that calls on all stakeholders ­ businesses, non-profit organizations, educational institutions and other levels of government ­ to come together to improve Canada's innovation performance and to see the maple leaf become a hallmark of excellence for the world. WD supports Canada's Innovation Strategy in the West by investing in innovative projects that move Western Canada more strongly into the knowledge-based economy.

Entrepreneurship

Creating a competitive and expanded business sector in the West

More so than elsewhere in the country, small business is the economic engine of Western Canada.
A study prepared by the Western Centre for Economic Research in 2001 revealed that the number of small businesses per capita is 40% higher in the West than in the rest of Canada. As the source of nearly 80% of new jobs, entrepreneurship is a powerful force for prosperity.

To fuel this valuable source of economic growth, WD supports the willingness of entrepreneurs to take risks, devise new products and services, and create jobs and opportunity in communities across Western Canada. In 2001-2002, the partners in WD's Western Canada Business Service Network responded to over 754,000 requests for information, provided more than 136,000 advisory services and trained 64,400 clients.

Sustainable Communities

Increased economic activity that improves the competitiveness and the quality of life in western Canadian communities

The sustainability of western Canadian communities is a goal that cannot be addressed through prosperity alone. Many factors - including social, environmental and economic issues ­ affect the ability of communities to access and take advantage of opportunities for sustainable growth.

Severe drought conditions, the softwood lumber dispute, fluctuations in commodity prices and the Kyoto Protocol are just a few of the broader issues that are impacting the sustainability of western Canadian communities.

WD plays a strategic role in addressing these issues in the West by forging partnerships between the federal government, the four western provincial governments, municipalities, academic institutions, industry and other stakeholders. These partnerships are helping to converge western interests and resources to build a sustainable future throughout the West.

 

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