Last
Thursday, May 7, a meeting of the Pan-Atlantic Investment Co-ordination
Committee was held here in St. John�s. This is a group comprised of
senior investment co-ordinators and officials from the Atlantic
Provinces and the Federal Government. Its primary objectives are to
facilitate investment partnerships and build awareness in international
markets to better establish the Atlantic region as a good place in which
to invest.
This was the first time since 2007 that Newfoundland
and Labrador has had the occasion to host a meeting of the Investment
Co-ordination Committee. It provided a beneficial opportunity for
officials of our government who are involved in investment attraction to
get together and interact face-to-face with counterparts from New
Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and the Federal Government,
in order to communicate; coordinate and share information; report on
progress; scope upcoming international events, conferences and missions;
and lay additional groundwork for increased investment activity in the
Atlantic Provinces.
Although on one level our provinces naturally compete
with one another for foreign and national business, we also hold common
interests in promoting our jurisdictions and region as a whole for
investment, and our individual efforts, activities and successes can
certainly have mutual benefits for us all.
The meeting also provided our province, as hosts, with
an opportunity to highlight to the Atlantic and federal agencies the
strengths and assets that make Newfoundland and Labrador an increasingly
attractive place to invest, including our wealth of resources, our
current and future major projects, and our significant financial
investments in areas like infrastructure and R&D.
Like other jurisdictions in Canada and around the
world, we recognize that attracting business from abroad creates new
employment and contributes to diversifying our economy. That is why our
government established the Business Attraction Fund as a key incentive
for investors, and why in Budget 2009 close to $30 million was provided
under the fund this fiscal year.
Our province was pleased to host last week�s meeting
of the Pan-Atlantic Investment Co-ordination Committee, as we advance
our own objective to position Newfoundland and Labrador as a preferred
destination for inward investment.
2009 05 14
1:55 p.m.