The Expert Panel on Skills was created in September 1998 by the Advisory Council on Science and Technology (ACST). The Panel's mandate was to provide expert advice on the critical skills needed in a number of industrial sectors, where Canada is already in a strong competitive position or where opportunities for economic growth and job creation are high. The sectors are: aerospace; automotive; bio-pharmaceuticals and bio-technologies in agriculture, aquaculture, and forestry; environmental technologies; and information and telecommunication technologies.

The Panel concluded its work in late 1999. Its report Stepping Up: Skills and Opportunities in the Knowledge Economy is available on this site. The report concluded that Canada's standard of living and its values as a nation are at risk without a more entrepreneurial culture and a determination to create more opportunities for Canadians to put their skills to work. An adequate supply of skills is but one of several inter-related and essential ingredients necessary for growth and wealth creation in the knowledge-based economy.