How can Canada act more strategically when investing in its future economic competitiveness? While its peers and competitors use sophisticated strategies to claim their place in emerging clean industries, Canada’s approach has been more fragmented. Without an overarching strategy to maximize the economic potential of its investments, it risks ad-hoc decision-making, wasteful spending, and reduced long-term economic opportunities.

Presented with the MacDonald-Laurier Institute, How to Prioritize Strategic Projects for Better Net-Zero Industrial Policy provides that high-level framework, outlining five factors that can help governments choose the projects that are most likely to contribute to sustainable industries and a competitive economy. The brief offers a simple set of questions to determine how a project fits into the broader economic landscape and to ensure investments have the potential to add up to more than the sum of their parts.

As a medium-sized economy, Canada cannot and should not attempt to compete with larger rivals for the same potential investments. By asking the right questions and applying this framework, governments will be better able to target sectors where they have a strategic advantage, creating more value for taxpayers and positioning domestic firms for lasting success in the global economy

For more on this framework, be sure to watch the Transition Accelerator’s webinar with report authors Heather Exner-Pirot and Bentley Allan here.