ECBC's 1999/2000 Annual Report

The Honourable John Manley
Minister of Industry, Minister for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6

Dear Mr. Minister:

On behalf of the Board of Directors, I am pleased to present the Annual Report of Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2000. This Annual Report is submitted in accordance with the provisions of the Financial Administration Act and the Government Organization Act, Atlantic Canada, 1987. It contains the annual financial statements together with the auditor’s report thereon.

Sincerely,
Michael Horgan
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation

Chairman’s Message[Contents]

The 1999/2000 fiscal year was most eventful for the economy of Cape Breton Island and consequently for Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation (ECBC). Charged with a legislative mandate to promote the industrial development of Cape Breton Island and the Mulgrave area, the life of the Corporation is intimately linked to the economic pulse of the Island.

The year began with the Government of Canada’s announcement to downsize and privatize the Cape Breton Development Corporation (DEVCO), the single largest employer on the Island. At the same time, the Government indicated that an economic adjustment fund would be established to assist Cape Breton Island communities in their efforts to grow and diversify the economy. Both announcements have significant ramifications for ECBC. The economic impact of the DEVCO announcement will challenge all those working in the area of economic development to redefine and grow the Island’s economic base.

An extensive consultation was launched to canvass the opinions of local residents as to how this fund could best be invested for the long term benefit of the local economy. ECBC played a key role in the organization and coordination of the consultation process. The Corporation served as the secretariat and its vice-president served as a consultation panel member. This proved to be an effective orientation for the Corporation’s new vice-president and chief operating officer, Rick Beaton, who joined ECBC on November 1, 1999, replacing outgoing vice-president, Keith Brown, who after two years in the position, returned to the education field.

Other personnel changes this year included the departure of two long-standing members of the Board of Directors, Ms. Gail Rudderham-Chernin and Mr. Charles Smith. Both individuals have contributed generously of their time and expertise to the Corporation and the community over the past five years. At the same time, the Board welcomed the appointment of two new directors, Ms. Ferne MacLennan and Mr. Spiro Trifos. Both individuals bring a wealth of experience to the Corporation.

In light of the transition taking place in the community, and in keeping with the recommendations resulting from the five-year special examination process, the Corporation undertook a new strategic planning process which involved the entire Corporation and key community stakeholders. The result is a plan which places greater emphasis on objectives and accountability for ECBC’s role as a delivery agent on behalf of the Government of Canada. The planning process also took into account the major themes and development objectives that evolved as part of the DEVCO economic adjustment fund consultation.

With regard to its economic development mandate, overall the Corporation has made progress in the achievement of its objectives as outlined in the 1999/2000 Corporate Plan. ECBC has continued to work with the private sector, industry networks and the local community to implement projects which have served to strengthen and broaden the Island’s economic base. Despite the economic difficulties being experienced in a number of sectors, there continues to be progress on various fronts. There have been several developments with local information technology companies as well as new opportunities for a number of companies working to expand through export development. Training opportunities in the oil and gas sector were enhanced in an effort to prepare Cape Bretoners for potential opportunities in the offshore. Tourism revenues continued to grow incrementally. At the end of the fiscal year, the Prime Minister announced that the Government of Canada, through ECBC, was providing financial support for the establishment of a 900-person call centre in Sydney.

Cape Breton Island’s economy continues to undergo dramatic structural changes as it moves from a goods-producing economy to a knowledge-based, service-oriented economy. The challenge is great but ECBC is well positioned to work with other levels of government and the people of the Island to deliver the necessary resources to address these challenges. Its broad and flexible mandate and its ability to act as a delivery agent for other federal programs are an asset to the community and will be of great assistance as efforts continue to grow a new economy.

Michael Horgan
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation

Corporate Profile[Contents]

ECBC is a federal Crown corporation established pursuant to Part II of the Government Organization Act, Atlantic Canada, 1987. It is a continuation of the Industrial Development Division of DEVCO, which was established as a Crown corporation in 1967 to oversee the downsizing of the Cape Breton coal fields and to assist in the diversification of the local economy.

The legislative mandate is broad and allows ECBC a great deal of flexibility in its economic development activities. It has stood the test of time, and is still relevant today as the Cape Breton Island economy goes through a period of major change and adjustment. ECBC has the legislative powers to develop any area of the economy with the exception of coal production.

ECBC’s Role in Economic Development

ECBC’s mission statement focuses the Corporation on the major issues affecting the economy of Cape Breton Island and the Mulgrave area.

ECBC recognizes the importance of community knowledge in identifying local/rural development. As a Crown corporation, ECBC has been involved in community economic development (CED) for many years and is committed to supporting the process of CED. Through its work with various community organizations (i.e. Regional Development Authorities (RDAs), Community Business Development Corporations (CBDCs) and local CED groups), regular rural visits and talking with people involved in community development, ECBC assists communities in developing the necessary skills and capabilities to improve their local economies.

Cape Breton Island faces severe economic challenges, however, ECBC sees many opportunities for economic growth. Over the past year, the Corporation has identified areas of the Cape Breton Island economy which have the strongest possibility of creating sustainable economic development. In the 1999/2000 Corporate Plan, ECBC embraced the notion of sectorial clusters and identified four primary clusters for investment: knowledge-based industries, tourism/culture/entertainment, resource-based industries and oil and gas.

The clustering of knowledge industries on Cape Breton Island, where there is opportunity for job creation and income generation, can be generally grouped into educational technologies, multimedia, environmental remediation, software and system design, call centres, wellness and health services and specialized research and development. On average 9,900 people are employed within the tourism/culture/entertainment sectors which represents 18 percent of the Island’s employed. The popularity of Cape Breton culture and the global interest in Gaelic, Mi’kmaq and French Acadian music and dance has led to a growing industry with strong links to tourism development.

The resource-based cluster is one of the principal mainstays of the rural Cape Breton Island economy. Agricultural output has grown dramatically in the past 10 years as Cape Breton County is now the second largest producer of horticultural products in the province. Forestry developments with value-added products such as finished hardwood flooring and developments in specialized fish markets continue to advance this sector.

The Sable Offshore Energy Project (SOEP) encompasses one of the largest known natural gas deposits to be developed in North America. As well, deposits off the northeast coast of Cape Breton Island, such as the Laurentian Sub-Basin, have a strong chance for development. The Island is well positioned to reap the economic benefits associated with the exploration and development of these offshore oil and gas fields.

Within these four principal clusters, ECBC has also focused on specific program priorities and strategic activities. These program priorities, by supporting the principal clusters, were focused on creating a stronger environment for economic growth.

The program priorities and strategic activities included:

• Youth
• Access to Capital
• Export Development
• Research and Development
• Human Resource Development
• Marketing: Economic Destination and Tourism

Each of these areas will be addressed as they relate to the identified strategic sectors within the development focus section of the 1999/2000 Corporate Plan. Marketing (economic destination and tourism) will be addressed under development priorities.

ECBC’s small geographic focus, local control and flexible mandate has enabled it to devise initiatives that are very specific to local needs and priorities. ECBC can take a multi-faceted or holistic approach to any problem, allowing the Corporation to bring together and involve all partners in the local economy for direction and input.

Relationship with ACOA

In addition to its own programs, ECBC acts as a delivery agent for other federal government programs, more specifically the programs of ACOA in its mandate area. ECBC’s activities enhance the effectiveness of ACOA programming and Cape Breton Island communities benefit from this unique relationship.

The President of ACOA is ex-officio, the Chairperson and CEO of ECBC. The Corporation’s Vice-President is an invited member of the ACOA Executive Committee. In 1994, ECBC entered into a Memorandum of Understanding through which ECBC delivers ACOA’s programming on Cape Breton Island and in the Mulgrave area. This has allowed ECBC to design its development approach to complement existing ACOA programs. Over the past year, ACOA programs delivered by ECBC included:

Business Development Program (BDP) -designed to help small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) to expand and modernize by offering access to capital in the form of interest-free, unsecured loans. It also supports non-profit organizations providing services to business. Consultant Advisory Services (CAS) - provides business clients with access to consulting expertise to pursue business opportunities and solve problems.

COOPERATION Program - Cooperation agreements are comprehensive, federal-provincial, cost-shared initiatives designed to improve the environment for economic growth.

Canadian Fisheries Adjustment and Restructuring (CFAR) introduced as FRAM in 1998, this program is designed to assist individuals and coastal communities affected by the downsizing of the Atlantic groundfishery.

Canada/Nova Scotia Infrastructure Works Program (CIWP) - a program intended to accelerate economic recovery by creating short and long-term employment through investment in local communities, while renewing and enhancing the physical infrastructure of Canada’s local communities.

Governance[Contents]

ECBC is subject to the control and accountability regime set out in the Financial Administration Act (FAA). ECBC is governed by a seven member Board of Directors and reports to Parliament through the Minister of Industry who is assisted by a Secretary of State. The Board is comprised of the Chairman, Vice-President and five other members appointed by the Governor-in-Council on the advice of the Minister of Industry. As set out in its enabling legislation, the Chairman of the Corporation is the President of ACOA and also serves as both the Chairperson of the Board of Directors and the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation.

The Board of Directors is responsible for a number of areas including providing strategic direction, safeguarding of Corporate assets, performance management and reporting to the Crown. It has one standing committee (Audit Committee), which meets regularly to ensure that the Corporation is appropriately reporting on its financial position and safeguarding its assets.

Over the past year, the Board has strived to improve its effectiveness by focusing on a number of corporate governance issues. Directors’ participation in policy development has been strengthened and training opportunities have been provided to new and existing Board members. Efforts are on-going to formalize the Board’s position on a number of governance issues (e.g. roles and responsibilities of Directors and performance reporting), in accordance with the Treasury Board’s Guidelines for Corporate Governance.

The ECBC Board of Directors meets, on average, seven times a year. It has an effective working relationship with ECBC management and receives regular updates on the Corporation’s activities and financial position. The Board not only approves the annual Corporate Plan but has the opportunity to participate in its development. In addition, the Board of Directors must approve all commitments in excess of $150,000 (signing authority for lesser amounts has been delegated to the Chairman, Vice-President and senior management).

ECBC at a Glance[Contents]

Please see pdf format to view chart

The Environment[Contents]

The Cape Breton Island economy, while experiencing pockets of growth in a variety of sectors, has yet to demonstrate the strong growth that is being experienced in other regions of the provincial and national economies. The following table (see pdf format) provides a comparison of labour force data on a regional, provincial and national basis.

Cape Breton Island has both a low participation rate and a high unemployment rate relative to Nova Scotia and Canada. This disparity is further reflected in the Island’s low employment rate (the number employed as a percentage of the working age population). Only 43 percent of the working age population in Cape Breton is employed compared to the national average of 61 percent. The following graph depicts the employment rate on Cape Breton Island over time relative to Canada.

The graph (see pdf format) highlights two important aspects of the Cape Breton Island economy. First, while Canada has been experiencing a rising employment rate, the employment rate in Cape Breton has declined from 1998 to 1999. Second, the seasonality of Cape Breton Island’s economy is apparent, with peaks in the employment rate during the summer months (July-September) followed by a sharp decline through fall and winter, rising again in the spring.

1999/2000 Development Focus[Contents]

Delivery Agent/Program Support

ACOA Programs

ECBC is responsible for the delivery of ACOA programs on Cape Breton Island and Mulgrave. These programs include the Business Development Program, the Canadian Fisheries Adjustment and Restructuring Program, Community Futures, the COOPERATION Program and the Canada/Nova Scotia Infrastructure Works Program.

In 1999/2000 a total of 141 ACOA offers were made with approved assistance totalling over $11.3 million. This assistance resulted in the creation of over 429 jobs. This document does not report on ACOA programs in detail as ACOA reports separately to Parliament.

Knowledge-based Industries

Over the past year, ECBC provided assistance to knowledge-based industries through support with access to capital, human resource development, export development and youth.

Access to Capital

ECBC played a lead role in establishing an EDS Canada customer contact centre. This facility will create up to 900 full-time jobs in Sydney over the next four years. The Centre, which will be operational in the summer of 2000, will support clients throughout North America. The majority of its activity will be handling inbound customer service enquiries by telephone, fax, e-mail and Internet.

The Corporation was also a major partner in bringing a 500 person call centre to Sydney in partnership with the Province of Nova Scotia and Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC). An animation company was established at Silicon Island late in the fiscal year and by the end of the year, the company was half way towards reaching its first job target of 32 employees. A new manufacturing facility established operations on Cape Breton Island with the assistance of ECBC. The company grew from 18 employees to over 60 by March 2000.

Human Resource Development

Throughout 1999/2000, the Corporation continued to promote sector development through its participation in the monthly Technology Advisory Group (TAG) meetings. Attendance for these meetings averaged between 60 - 100 people.

Export Development

In the area of trade development, ECBC participated in a number of major trade shows such as the Commerce ‘99 Business and Technology Solutions Expo in Ottawa and the 1999 Canadian High Technology Show in Mississauga. In addition, the Corporation partnered with ACOA to offer an E-Commerce Seminar and promoted the third annual Atlantic Digital Media Festival.

Youth

ECBC conducted many joint projects with the University College of Cape Breton under the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding in which both organizations agreed to cooperate to further the economic and social development of the Island. These projects emphasized youth and also included community economic development and CD ROM productions for the cultural sector.

ECBC supported an Island-wide survey of youth (students Grades 8-12). The results of the survey will be used in the development of a strategic plan for youth on Cape Breton Island.

Tourism/Entertainment/Culture

Cape Breton Island witnessed an exciting year with respect to tourism, entertainment and culture. The Corporation supported this growing sector with efforts in trade and export development.

Export Development

ECBC led a trade mission as part of the major marketing promotion with the new CAT Ferry to Boston in May 1999. Fifteen private-sector operators took part in this three day consumer show targeting the New England States.

Throughout 1999/2000, the Corporation continued its participation in the monthly Culture and Heritage Advisory Group (CHAG) meetings. As well, ECBC’s role in the development of festivals and special events included its assistance with the organization, presentation and marketing of the third annual Celtic Colours International Festival and the 12th Annual East Coast Music Awards 2000 held in Sydney. The economic impact of the 1999 Celtic Colours Festival reached over $4 million.

A test run for the new VIA Rail Bras d’Or Train took place in November, 1999 with 100 tourism operators on board. The train, which will be operational by May 2000, will offer travellers a new tourism experience. All indications point to a service which will diversify the tourism product on Cape Breton Island and attract additional visitors. ECBC worked with Tourism Cape Breton to develop the Island’s location and site infrastructure.

Another exciting project encompassed the development of a new cultural product with the Nova Scotia Highland Village’s Genealogy Centre and the development of its award winning marketing campaign.

The extended upgrade of the Gaelic College of Celtic Arts and Crafts in St. Ann’s has helped solidify the College as a cultural tourist attraction.

The Corporation also supported the marketing development of Port Hawkesbury’s Granville Green, the Ceilidh Series at the Creamery and the Isle Quilt Market. As a result of ECBC’s support with infrastructure development, the Creamery is now Cape Breton Island’s only VIA Rail Bras d’Or Train stop between Halifax and Sydney.

Resource-based Industries

Resource-based industries on Cape Breton Island demonstrated solid growth over 1999/2000 as the Corporation focused on international trade development within this sector.

Export Development

The formation of the Bras d’Or Producers Cooperative Ltd., involving the four largest horticultural producers on Cape Breton Island, has made it easier for international buyers to order and ship products worldwide. In the forestry sector, ECBC looked toward value-added production for flooring by working with companies such as Forest Insight and its establishment of a pre-finished hardwood flooring manufacturing plant. As well, the Corporation, in conjunction with Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation (CMHC), helped to move the building production sector into the international marketplace by developing trade opportunities with various companies.

ECBC, in partnership with the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture and Marketing, led a mission to participate in the Canadian Food and Beverage Showcases in Barbados, St. Maartens and Jamaica. Projected product sales resulting from the shows are expected to reach $500,000 with opportunities to ship a variety of food products worldwide. ECBC also led a wood, food and agricultural product trade show to Germany in late 1999 that generated approximately $400,000 in sales for Cape Breton Island companies.

Oil & Gas

ECBC continued its efforts to maximize the short and long-term economic benefits which accrue to its mandate area as a result of the development of oil and gas reserves off the coast of Nova Scotia. Specifically, it focused on the areas of trade and human resource development.

Export Development

The Corporation participated, along with private sector companies, in trade shows and conferences in North America and Europe including the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, Texas, the Eastern Canadian Natural Gas Conference in Halifax, Offshore Europe in Aberdeen, UK, the CORE Conference and the Nova Scotia Offshore Trade Fair in Halifax. These venues provided excellent opportunities for promoting Cape Breton Island to the petroleum industry.

Development of a quarterly oil and gas newsletter, Pipeline East, continued during 1999/2000. This publication is distributed throughout Canada and the United States, to promote the region to oil and gas industry players as well as to inform the local community of opportunities associated with oil and gas activity.

Regular meetings of the Potential Gas Opportunities Group (POGO) also continued. This group enables local businesses to access information pertaining to contracts on the Sable project. In addition, ECBC developedworkshops aimed at bringing together the fishing and oil and gas industries to address ways these two industries can co-exist.

Human Resource Development

Industry training was at the forefront of yearly initiatives as ECBC worked closely with the University College of Cape Breton and the Nova Scotia Community College’s Marconi and Strait Area Campuses to identify various needs of the oil and gas sector and to develop appropriate courses to respond to those needs. This helped to ensure that Cape Breton Island workers were ready to meet the needs of this growing east coast industry.

The Corporation is working jointly with the Nova Scotia Petroleum Directorate on a manufacturing capabilities study. The study, now underway, will determine the capabilities of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick companies to co-venture, therefore gaining a greater share of Tier II work (the Tier II Sable Project will involve the construction of three platforms).

Development Priorities [Contents]

Image Campaign

A need to enhance the image of Cape Breton Island was identified as a corporate priority. A series of initiatives addressing this issue was undertaken over the past year as ECBC continued to promote the Island as a good place to live and to do business.

In 1999, a new television commercial was developed for national audience. This commercial highlighted new and growing industries on-Island. In addition, “The View From Here is Global” print campaign was launched in the fall of 1999. This campaign consisted of a series of print ads profiling growing areas of the Island’s economy, including industries that export products to a world market.

To test the effectiveness of its campaign, ECBC undertook a quantitative research study in the Halifax-Dartmouth area and on Cape Breton Island. The purpose of the study was to determine whether there had been any changeof opinion regarding the general image of the Island. Results indicated that while there was good recollection of the image advertisements, the message was diluted due to the amount of negative media coverage concerning the Island’s economy. Consequently, opinions had not changed.

Tourism Marketing

The 1999/2000 tourism promotion campaign involved marketing activities such as the placement of ads and business reply cards in the Nova Scotia Doers and Dreamers Guide and a variety of magazines in Ontario, New England and Quebec.

An advertising and promotion conversion study was completed in cooperation with the Province of Nova Scotia to measure the effectiveness of advertising in motivating inquiries as well as to measure the effectiveness of translating these inquiries into a Cape Breton Island vacation. The results of this research can be summarized as follows: the number of inquiries exceeded 100,000, an increase of 160 percent over last year; the number of parties visiting the Island (as a result of this advertising) almost doubled from 13,520 to 24,240; and this tourist activity resulted in an estimated $25 million in direct spending on the Island. Further, it was determined that if Cape Breton Island was to rely solely on the advertising efforts of the province, visitation resulting from advertising would drop by more than 25 percent.

For the third consecutive year, tourism continued to grow on Cape Breton Island. Tourism receipts in 1999 were over $230 million (up by approximately 10 percent) and this sector accounts for over 6,600 direct and indirect jobs.

ECBC, in partnership with the Province of Nova Scotia and tourism operators, offered familiarization (FAM) tours throughout 1999. The tourism industry hosted 43 media writers and 11 travel trade FAM tours with 219 travel agents, tour operators and wholesalers. The private sector contributed over $85,000 (in-kind) to the FAM program, coupled with ECBC’s $46,000 investment. Most media coverage generated as a result of these FAM tours will not appear until 2000 or later. However, the estimated value of editorial coverage generated as a result of 1998 FAM tours is $8.7 million.

The revamping of the tourism web site was initiated. The site will provide information to potential visitors while assisting the Corporation in its efforts to gather valuable information to assist with future marketing campaigns.

Operations [Contents]

Sydport Divestiture

In September 1999, ECBC successfully negotiated an agreement for the takeover of the Sydport Industrial Park by the Laurentian Energy Corporation Inc. of Sydney. The Park had belonged to ECBC and its predecessor, the Industrial Development Division of DEVCO, since 1969.

The purchase price for the Park was $3.7 million (including interest of 6.75% per year for three years). ECBC will hold a mortgage on the property for three years with an option to extend the agreement for an additional two years. During that time, Laurentian must invest a minimum of $5.1 million in capital improvements and create at least 100 new jobs in the Park. The mortgage and related interest can be forgiven through credits for specified levels of employment created.

Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries

ECBC holds three wholly-owned subsidiaries that are currently inactive.

Resource Centre

The Resource Centre in Point Edward is an infrastructure investment that ECBC makes in order to support the development of the resource sector. The Centre works with the University College of Cape Breton, the provincial government and other federal departments to carry out research related to the Island’s resource-based industries.

In the fall of 1999, the Centre completed a three year Fly Ash Recovery Research Program in conjunction with Nova Scotia Power. It also hosted a greenhouse insulation research project using a locally developed technology, and a worm composting project for the Atlantic Coastal Action Program.

The Centre continued to manage 1,400 acres of woodlands and to work with the Cape Breton Victoria District School Board to run a Forest Resource Training Program. It also worked with the private sector to develop a blueberry production business that farmed 8,000 pounds of berries in 1999. In the spring, a CAP Site opened in the Centre’s main building, offering computer/Internet services to the local community.

The Strait Area Business Centre(Port Hawkesbury)

ECBC continued to operate the Strait Area Business Centre which houses the Corporation’s regional office in Port Hawkesbury. The Centre was designed as an incubator space for small and medium-sized enterprises and accommodates a number of tenants including the Strait District Planning Commission, the Strait-Highlands Regional Development Agency, InRich Business Development Centre Ltd. and Nova Scotia Economic Development.

Internal Analysis [Contents]

Client Satisfaction Survey

The Corporation initiated a research project to provide critical client satisfaction information by interviewing ECBC clients on Cape Breton Island.More specifically,this study endeavored to achieve the following:

• determine the level of customer and public satisfaction
• identify strengths and weaknesses within the Corporation
• reflect the attitude between different locations as to the level of service they are receiving
• assist the Corporation in the development of its strategic plan
• help focus the Corporation over the next five years
• provide a framework for ECBC to improve its service delivery and the development of a Client Service Action Plan

The results of this survey will not be available until the next fiscal year.

Y2K Preparedness

In 1999 ECBC undertook an extensive program to meet the objective of having its business operations run accurately throughout the Year 2000 transition period.The program included assessment and prioritization,action planning, testing and validation,implementation, preparation and testing of operational contingency plans and an independent risk assessment audit.

On January 1,2000 all systems were restarted and tested for accurate operations in the Year 2000.The transition was 100 percent successful and subsequent operations have not encountered any 2000 date-related issues.

Strategic Planning

Throughout 1999/2000 the Corporation was involved in a strategic planning process which resulted in the development of its new Corporate Plan.This exercise was undertaken with a view to placing a greater focus on objectives and accountability and to develop a plan which accounted for ECBC ’s role as a delivery agent on behalf of the Government of Canada.During the planning process an environmental scan was completed and information was gathered from a number of sources.These sources included:the Board of Directors; staff; a sector profile of the Cape Breton economy; Statistics Canada demographic data; information relating to current economic development programming and various policy papers.

The strategic planning process also benefitted from the Island-wide consultation process initiated by the Government of Canada following its announcement to downsize and privatize DEVCO. The results of the consultation process have figured prominently in the development of the Corporation’s strategic focus and in turn, its 2000/2001 Corporate Plan.

Greater Focus on Objectives

The Corporate Plan continues to reflect ECBC’s emphasis on providing assistance in a manner that is consistent with its mandate - long-term, sustainable job creation. To achieve this, the Corporation has placed a greater emphasis on projects that enhance the competitiveness of firms and increase trade and investment opportunities.

To accommodate this new focus,an organizational structure was put in place which directly aligns the Corporation with its strategic objectives.The new structure organizes the Corporation into commercial and non- commercial divisions.While the Corporation will maintain its traditional focus on specific economic sectors including oil and gas,tourism, resource-based and knowledge-based,it has added new units which will strengthen its capabilities in these areas.

The new units include:a partnership office in Halifax to work with the private sector and all levels of government to advocate for the interests of Cape Breton Island;a trade and investment unit focused on enhancing the capabilities of Cape Breton businesses so that they may establish trading relationships and expand trading activity;and a policy unit with a strong research mandate that will work in close cooperation with ACOA and the Province of Nova Scotia.

Increased Accountability

ECBC has again committed to implementing measures that continue to strengthen the Corporation ’s accountability to its Board of Directors,the Government of Canada and the public.First,ECBC has developed a Corporate Plan that focuses the Corporation on a number of objectives and establishes result targets for those objectives.Second,the Corporation has been working with Treasury Board and has committed to updating its performance management system to ensure consistency with the current Treasury Board guidelines.Third, the Corporation has established an internal audit function to assist management achieve and maintain efficiency and effectiveness in its operations.Finally,the Corporation has committed to working more closely with its Board of Directors to formalize the Board ’s position on a number of governance issues and to increase the Board ’s participation in policy development.

Role as a Delivery Agent,/p>

By recognizing ECBC ’s role as a delivery agent in the Corporate Plan,the Corporation has highlighted its greatest strength -its accessibility and involvement at the local level and the responsiveness and flexibility that is possible as a Crown corporation.In its role as a delivery agent,ECBC will continue to draw upon this strength and to use its own programming and economic development tools in ways that improve the effectiveness of program delivery on Cape Breton Island.

Cooperative Relationships [Contents]

ECBC works with all levels of government and the private sector to address the economic conditions of Cape Breton Island and the Mulgrave area.Over the past year,the Corporation has established a number of working relationships including:

The Human Development Partnership Committee

-Formed to enhance the capacity of individual communities to determine needs,identify assets and build on strengths critical to the development of appropriate,sustainable programs and services that are consistent with the Labour Market Development Agreement priorities. ECBC is represented on the Committee along with other federal departments,provincial government departments,school boards and training institutions.

Canada/Nova Scotia COOPERATION Agreement on Economic Diversification

- ECBC is an active member on the management committee of the Canada/Nova Scotia COOPERATION Agreement on Economic Diversification (EDA). The EDA is a cooperation agreement between the province and the federal government to target strategic initiatives for Nova Scotia that will generate economic growth.

The Mayors and Wardens Committee

- An ECBC led initiative to bring municipal officials together with federal and provincial departments for joint discussions on economic development.

Persons With Disabilities Partnership Committee for Cape Breton

-ECBC works closely with HRDC and 14 local organizations.Its main objective is employment for persons with disabilities. Federal/Provincial Working Group for Sustainable Communities -ECBC is a member of the group (including 35 provincial and federal departments)which is exploring ways to work more effectively together and with communities to support local efforts toward sustainability.

The Nova Scotia Federal Council

-the Council has established a sub-committee on economic development specifically for Cape Breton Island.This committee brings together various federal departments to focus on a coordinated approach to economic development in Cape Breton.

Community Economic Development

-ECBC has worked closely over the past year with its partners the Cape Breton County Economic Development Authority,Strait Highlands Regional Development Authority and the three Community Business Development Corporations;(InRich Business Development Centre Ltd.,Coastal Business Opportunities Inc. and Northside Economic Development Assistance Corporation),in assisting with local development initiatives.

Working with our partners,ECBC has been able to provide expertise and funding to assist community groups in their process of strategic planning and community capacity building.

Liaison with our other funding partners,HRDC, Nova Scotia Economic Development,the Rural Partnership and Nova Scotia Community Services has afforded ECBC the ability to increase the availability of business capital/ services in both the urban and rural areas around the Island.