Canadian business welcomes increased focus on Indo-Pacific

(OTTAWA) — 27 November 2022 — The Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s President and CEO, Perrin Beatty, today issued the following statement in response to the publication of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy.

“The Canadian Chamber welcomes the government’s commitment to broaden and deepen Canada’s economic engagement in the Indo-Pacific region. This region holds great potential for Canada, including for Canadian businesses, and we look forward to working with the government in diversifying and strengthening our economic activities in the Indo-Pacific.

“The single largest immediate contribution Canada can make to the Indo-Pacific is to develop a comprehensive strategy to export far greater quantities of food, fuel and fertilizer to the region. Canada is uniquely blessed with massive quantities of these vital resources. We welcome the opening of the first Agriculture and Agri-food Office in the region as a first step and encourage the government to announce an export strategy to get these key commodities to market.

“The Canadian Chamber looks forward to working with the announced Canadian Trade Gateway in Southeast Asia and the new Indo-Pacific Trade Representative.

“In addition to increasing our presence in the region, much of the important work that needs to be done is here at home. The document mentions the ongoing National Trade Corridors Fund and a new priority for cultural ties between the region and its diaspora in Canada. Any successful strategy must give an enhanced priority to building the trade-enhancing infrastructure that is needed to significantly increase our exports. Additionally, the rapidly-growing communities of Canadians who trace their roots to the region provide a much-underutilized source of people who speak the languages, understand the cultures and have networks of family and friends in the region and who could help to strengthen our trade and investment ties.

“The Canadian Chamber welcomes the announcements to strengthen detection and response to cybersecurity threats originating from the region as well as the intention to work with regional partners to promote coherent regulations affecting the internet.

“Of necessity, the picture presented by the strategy is very high-level. It sets broad priorities for the region and provides greater detail on some of the individual markets. Because the region is both large and diverse, one size definitely does not fit all. Canada’s priorities will need to be very nuanced both between and within countries. We look forward to receiving further information about the government’s approach to Canada’s relationship with the highlighted countries but also with others, including Indonesia, Pakistan, Australia and New Zealand.

“Finally, in addition to providing opportunities for Canadian investors, the region also offers major opportunities for inbound investment to Canada. We urge the government to make attracting investment from the region a priority.”

About the Canadian Chamber of Commerce — The Future of Business Success

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce is Canada’s largest and most activated business network — representing over 400 chambers of commerce and boards of trade and more than 200,000 businesses of all sizes, from all sectors of the economy and from every part of the country — to create the conditions for our collective success. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce is the undisputed champion and catalyst for the future of business success. From working with government on economy-friendly policy to providing services that inform commerce and enable trade, we give each of our members more of what they need to succeed: insight into markets, competitors and trends, influence over the decisions and policies that drive business success and impact on business and economic performance.

– 30 –

Contact
Emily Walsh
ewalsh@chamber.ca