Minister Bains promotes $950-million plan to accelerate innovation for jobs and growth
MONTRÉAL, May 25, 2017 /CNW/ - Montréal owes its global leadership in gaming technologies, artificial intelligence, aerospace and life sciences to the creativity and diversity of its highly skilled workforce, which continues to train for the well-paying middle-class jobs of today and tomorrow.
That message was delivered by the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, during an address at C2 Montréal, an international conference about the future of business attended by business leaders, innovators, educators and policy-makers.
Minister Bains later spoke to an audience of Quebec business leaders and policy-makers at the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations, a non-partisan organization that promotes greater understanding of Canada's place in the world.
During his keynote speech, Minister Bains spoke about the Government of Canada's plan to accelerate innovation in high-growth areas where Canada is a world leader. He outlined a nationwide process to select up to five innovation superclusters that will qualify for a $950-million investment.
The jobs, companies and business opportunities created from the superclusters initiative will equip Canadians with the advanced, specialized and in-demand skills they need for the well-paying jobs of the future.
This initiative, which is part of the Government's Innovation and Skills Plan, represents a federal investment in innovation on a scale that has rarely been seen in Canada. Applications for funding will be accepted from industry-led consortia that include large and small companies. Each business-led consortium must commit to matching dollar for dollar the amount it is requesting under this initiative.
Successful proposals will be evaluated based on their strategy for creating and growing new companies, creating jobs that require advanced skill sets, equipping Canadians with the knowledge and skills for the jobs of the future, attracting private investment and generating meaningful economic activity that leads to prosperity for Canadians.
Quote
"Montréal and Canada are international destinations for new and ambitious ideas. Our investment in superclusters will create well-playing middle class jobs and help grow the economy. The Innovation and Skills Plan will equip Canadians with the skills they need for the jobs of today and tomorrow, and this investment in innovation will create those jobs."
– The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development
Quick facts
The Innovation and Skills Plan includes:
- $950 million over five years to create innovation superclusters.
- The superclusters initiative is a multi-year strategy to make Canada a world-leading centre for innovation, create more well-paying jobs and grow the middle class.
- Superclusters are dense areas of business activity where innovation happens and where many of the middle-class jobs of today and tomorrow are created. They attract large and small companies that collaborate with universities, colleges or not-for-profit organizations to turn ideas into solutions that can be brought to market.
- $2.3 billion to support clean technology research, development, demonstration and adoption and the scaling up of Canadian businesses.
- $125 million to attract and retain top researchers in the burgeoning field of artificial intelligence and deep learning.
- $400 million over three years to increase late-stage venture capital available to Canadian entrepreneurs.
- the Global Skills Strategy, launching on June 12, which will enable Canadian companies to recruit top international talent more quickly and easily.
- Innovation Canada, a new platform that will make it quicker and easier for Canadian innovators to access federal programs that support business growth.
Follow Minister Bains on Twitter: @MinisterISED
SOURCE Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
Karl W. Sasseville, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, 343-291-2500; Media Relations, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, 343-291-1777, [email protected]
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