Why Trade Matters
Trade and the Canadian Economy
Trade Mission to Chile: Mission Accomplished
Stories of the Week -
December 15, 2003:
The trade mission to Santiago, which took place from December 2 to 5, 2003, and involved 51 businesses, enabled Canadian firms to land new business deals in Chile and reaffirmed Canada's commitment to the Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA).
This agreement benefits both countries; indeed, trade and investment have climbed steadily since it came into effect.
Bilateral trade has jumped by 32.3 percent since 1997, reaching nearly $1 billion in 2002.
Canada and Chile also concluded an Air Transport Agreement (ATA) whereby each country's designated carrier will offer direct air service to all destinations in the other country, with no restrictions on scheduling or fares. This marks an important step, not only in liberalizing air relations between Canada and Chile, but also in relation to the CCFTA. The ATA paves the way for direct, regular service between the two countries, which should facilitate the flow of passengers and goods and the creation of trade links.
This week's edition of Stories of the Week highlights a variety of firms that took part in the trade mission to Chile and signed deals with Chilean companies.
Stories of the Week - December 15, 2003
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Biotechnology Fighting AIDS and Cancer
Canbreal Therodiagnostics International Inc., Ottawa, Ontario
Canbreal Therodiagnostics International Inc. develops treatments that can cut the mortality rates of people suffering from cancer (particularly breast cancer), AIDS and neurodegenerative diseases. That in itself is a challenge. But the CEO of the Ottawa biotech company, Dr. Gabriel Pulido-Cejudo, says that the hardest part of developing markets in other countries is convincing governments to be leaders in public health. That is why he joined the Canada Trade Mission to Chile, his fifth such trip in three years. "You won't have public health without government support," says Dr. Pulido-Cejudo. "These missions allow us to effectively evaluate the interest of governments in other countries, as part of a high-profile delegation."
Canbreal signed a memorandum of understanding with the University of Chile's Institute of Biomedical Science to initiate a national program for the early detection and prevention of breast cancer, using Canbreal's technology. During last year's trade mission to Africa, the company signed an agreement with the Institut du cancer de Dakar [Dakar Cancer Institute] to develop a similar program in Senegal. The Team Canada 2002 Trade Mission to Russia and Germany was also successful for Canbreal, which signed three agreements to develop strategic programs based on its products and technologies. Dr. Pulido-Cejudo is currently following up on initiatives undertaken during the Trade Mission to Mexico and also participated in the Team Canada trip to China in 2001. This, he says, "had a dramatic impact in streamlining whom we can work with."
Canbreal was founded in 1998 by Dr. Pulido-Cejudo to commercialize a revolutionary low-cost blood test for breast cancer that he developed while at Health Canada. Today, the firm has 20 people on staff and conducts collaborative research with organizations in Chile, Denmark, England, France, Greece, Italy, Mexico and Spain. The aim is to establish and promote applied research programs centred on the development of biotechnology-based products, bio-systems and non-invasive therapies.
A Company Built on Exports
MIC, Maisons Internationales du Canada Inc., Saint-Lambert, Quebec
MIC, Maisons Internationales du Canada Inc. is dedicated to exporting Canadian building technologies. By dealing directly with local builders and developing joint ventures, MIC guides a project from architectural design and local training on assembling the systems, through to the delivery of prefabricated housing. Over the past six years, MIC—which heads a consortium of construction companies from Quebec, Ontario and Alberta— has completed more than 100 residential projects in Chile, France, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
During the Canada Trade Mission to Chile, MIC signed a memorandum of understanding with four local companies to promote and build Canadian wood-framed and recreational housing units in the region of Concepcion. This agreement, which will also target the sale of secondary residential units, has a total estimated value of $7 million over the next five years, all Canadian content.
MIC also participated in the Canada Trade Mission to Central Europe in 2000, during which the company signed a contract to build five houses in Slovakia. "Federal government-led trade missions such as these are particularly beneficial for promoting Canada's technological expertise," says MIC president Christian Samman. "They give companies like ours much greater credibility and visibility." Since 2000, MIC has set up a joint venture in Slovakia that is producing one house each month, an output that Samman expects will triple during 2004. "Our goal is to make Slovakia a springboard to the rest of Central Europe and to establish a manufacturing plant to serve the region. With Slovakia a member of the European Union and the increase in its standard of living, we see ourselves becoming more competitive there."
MIC has been an integral part of the SUPER E™ House Program, a Canadian government initiative initially developed to produce energy-efficient homes for the Japanese market. In 2002, MIC embarked on the first SUPER E™ project in the United Kingdom: of a potential 250 residential units, to date more than 60 have been built.
Partnering for Economic Development in Chile
University College of the Cariboo, Kamloops, British Columbia
Active in Chile since 1996, the University College of the Cariboo (UCC) is involved in student and faculty exchanges, as well as the transfer of curriculum and teaching methodology, with a number of Chilean institutions. These include the Universidad de Santiago; the Instituto Tecnológico de Computación, a leading technical institute in Santiago; and INACAP, Chile's official national training institute. To date, five Chilean students have attended UCC's Kamloops campus.
UCC International took advantage of the Canada Trade Mission to Chile to finalize two agreements. For Executive Director Cyndi McLeod, however, the trip represented much more. "It was a great opportunity to make valuable new contacts and strengthen existing partnerships by demonstrating Canada's continuing commitment to developing business and educational ties with this very important market," says McLeod. "Trade mission staff, along with the Canadian embassy in Chile, were able to set up one-on-one meetings with potential business partners, facilitate contact with key people and provide essential services such as translation and other necessary support."
During the mission, UCC and Canglobal Management Inc., a Saskatoon-based consulting company, signed a memorandum of understanding with CT Valparaíso to develop a sustainable program for the establishment of a cluster of industries, products and services targeted to the Chilean educational market. Based in the Valparaíso and Viña del Mar region, the project is a component of Industry Canada's Sustainable Cities Initiative. UCC and Canglobal also signed an agreement with Fundación Chile to work with small rural producers to identify products that comply with standards for organic and "fair trade" certification; evaluate strategies for producers to meet market demand; and provide producers with technical and marketing training.
UCC offers more than 100 bachelor's degree, diploma and certificate programs in Business Management, Computing Science, Tourism, Environmental Science, Health Sciences, Arts and Humanities and English Language and Culture. Its international projects and linkages currently extend to more than 20 countries.
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