2023-2024 Departmental plan

From the Minister

As Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development, I am honoured to continue to serve Canadians as we work collectively to chart our path to inclusive and sustainable prosperity. In emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide supply chain challenges, and heightened geo-political uncertainty, Canada is building a more resilient economy – one that is ready to seize the opportunities available to it.

Global companies invested $75.5 billion in Canada in 2021, a 15-year high for foreign direct investment, and investment levels in 2022 remain steady.

Canada’s value proposition to global investors is solid, and the Canadian advantage is persuasive, especially in
transformative industries such as carbon-free mobility, production and processing of critical minerals, clean technology and energy, and value-added agriculture. Another important part of Canada’s value proposition is its diversity advantage. Canada is diverse in its regions and its people, including a highly educated and diverse workforce to support investment growth in these transformative sectors. Our government will continue to provide the support and resources needed to build on these advantages and contribute to the government’s commitment to inclusion for diverse groups.

Invest in Canada has an important role in attracting and facilitating transformative investments by global companies. Working in close collaboration with the Trade Commissioner Service and numerous partners across Canada, Invest in Canada helps ensure that global companies can navigate Canada’s business environment seamlessly and efficiently.

Invest in Canada is marking its five-year anniversary in 2023, and its first major leadership transition is underway. Last fall, I was pleased to announce the appointment of Laurel Broten as Chief Executive Officer and Karl Tabbakh as Chair of the Board of Directors. Laurel has served in leadership roles in both the public and private sectors and as a champion for women, diversity, equity, and inclusion for 30 years. Invest in Canada will also be served well at the board level, as Karl brings with him unique experience as the regional managing partner for McCarthy Tétrault in Quebec and co-leader of its international business strategy.

I look forward to continuing my work to support Invest in Canada to ensure it can deliver on its economically important mandate and maximize our return on investment for Canadian taxpayers. 

I am pleased to present Invest in Canada’s 2023-24 Departmental Plan, which outlines its strategy to meet its priorities and results over the coming year. 

The Honourable Mary Ng
Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development

From the Chair of the Board of Directors 

It is my honour to serve as the new Chair of the Board of Directors of Invest in Canada. I am humbled by the trust that the Government of Canada has placed in me and am grateful for the opportunity to serve our country in this position.

Efforts to grow investments into Canada are critical tactics to support Canada’s trade diversification strategy and increasing global investments into Canada is proving to be critical approach in economic growth strategy.
Canada had a successful year attracting foreign direct investment in 2022 with quarterly inflows surpassing the 10-year quarterly averages. It is encouraging to see growth and diversification of the share of investment that is coming from outside Canada’s traditional sources of foreign direct investment. This demonstrates that Canada has the conditions in place that global companies are looking around the world to find and that our country is an ideal destination for investment dollars and becoming an increasingly attractive location to new markets.

Invest in Canada plays a pivotal role in supporting global investors in their decisions to choose Canada, and in overcoming obstacles to the launch or expansion of operations here. The customized services that Invest in Canada offers are invaluable in helping to speak to global companies with one voice. Of course, Invest in Canada works in close collaboration with partners around the world and our provincial, territorial, and local agencies. I look forward to working with Invest in Canada’s management team as they continue to grow Canada’s brand on the international stage, bring strategic projects to Canada, and foster innovative business
relations that will contribute to our country’s prosperity.

I am excited to be joining a talented Board composed of exceptional Canadian business leaders and individuals who combine a deep knowledge of government and policy making, with extensive experience as entrepreneurs, innovators, and business decision-makers. It is this wealth of expertise that I will tap into while sharing my own experiences conducting international business transactions around the world to support the efforts of our new CEO Laurel Broten and her team at Invest in Canada in order to deliver on the organisation’s mandate.

I offer sincere thanks and congratulations to my predecessor as Chair of the Board, Mitch Garber, who led Invest in Canada’s Board from its inception. His knowledge, experience and connections have been invaluable to Invest in Canada’s successful launch and ongoing success. 

Canada has demonstrated that it is primed for global investments and I am confident that Invest in Canada is ready to lead the efforts to showcase Canada on the international stage.

Karl Tabbakh

From the Chief Executive Officer

It is my great privilege to be Chief Executive Officer of Invest in Canada. Since I assumed this position in October 2022, I am increasingly convinced that Invest in Canada is uniquely positioned and perfectly poised to facilitate and accelerate high-value foreign direct investment into our country.

Invest in Canada finds the best to invest – attracting and supporting companies whose investments are in Canada’s best interests to bring employment and innovation to communities across Canada.

These early months have been instructive for me. I have met with international clients, partner organizations, governmental departments and agencies, and with our Invest in Canada team. I have learned about where Invest in Canada already adds value to investment attraction efforts, and where we can provide even greater support.

I want to thank Minister Ng, our new Chair of the Board, Karl Tabbakh, and the members of the board of directors for their warm introduction and wise counsel as we work together to achieve organizational and government objectives.

As we plan for 2023-24 and beyond, Invest in Canada is committed to delivering results that align with the Government of Canada’s economic and sustainability priorities. Our sectors of focus include the electric vehicle battery supply chain, energy transition (including hydrogen, alternative fuels and other net-zero transition investments), life sciences and bio-manufacturing, and value-added agriculture.

Invest in Canada will take a pan-Canadian approach to articulating the Canadian value proposition to the world. Communities large and small across Canada have much to offer to global investors, and Invest in Canada is uniquely positioned to support them.

In our pursuit of operational excellence, our activities will be guided by an elevated commitment to strategic thinking, an examination of alternatives, and an analysis of impacts. We will seek out and apply the best-available evidence from our internal Invest in Canada team, governments, partners, and third-party experts, including research currently being conducted in partnership with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Invest in Canada will continue to play an important promotional role in telling a global audience about Canada’s success stories and potential, emphasizing the main pillars of Canada’s value proposition for investors: a talented workforce; access to global markets; a commitment to sustainability; political and economic stability; and a favourable business environment.

Over the next year, I look forward to gathering intelligence, examining our processes, and reaching out to partners and peers to identify how Invest in Canada can better improve our services to clients and partners, measure our successes, outcomes and impact deepen and broaden our reach and maximize foreign direct investment opportunities across Canada. As an organization, Invest in Canada will always strive for operational excellence and will evolve and refine our strategies and approaches to focus on adding value and driving impact in the work that we are privileged to carry out on behalf of Canada.

On behalf of the entire Invest in Canada team, thank you for your confidence in our work. We are excited and optimistic about the opportunities that lie ahead as we continue to build a robust, sustainable, inclusive, and prosperous future for Canada.

Laurel Broten

Plans at a glance

Since its launch in 2018, Invest in Canada has been committed to carrying out its mandate to promote, attract and facilitate foreign direct investment (FDI) into Canada. The organization coordinates efforts with partners across all orders of government, the private sector and other stakeholders to promote Canada as a premier investment destination to global investors.

After a slowdown of FDI brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, last year proved to be one of recovery as global business leaders resumed normal activities and put international expansion plans into action in Canada. Global investments into Canada have rebounded since the lows of the COVID-19 pandemic. By the third quarter of 2022, foreign direct investment inflows into Canada were 33.7% higher than the 10-year quarterly average and 30.5% higher than the fiveyear quarterly average. Though Canada’s economy remains resilient, Invest in Canada understands the importance of dedicating resources to initiatives that will continue to generate
worldwide trade and investment efforts to improve the long-term health of the Canadian and global economies.

Over the last five years, Invest in Canada has become a strategic partner in the - FDI ecosystem to support investors with customized investor services support on high impact and transformative projects across Canada. Invest in Canada has developed and leveraged partnerships with provinces and cities across Canada, to build awareness of Canada’s unique advantages to distinguish our value proposition from international competitors. This positioning is instrumental to supporting the Government of Canada’s aim to drive more innovation, diversified investment and trade into Canada and to encourage sustained growth.

In 2023-24, Invest in Canada will continue to align its planned results with the Government of Canada’s strategic priorities and the objectives set forth in the Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development’s portfolio mandate, such as supporting inclusive economic recovery and advancing diversified trade and investment opportunities. With this in mind, Invest in Canada will focus its targeted research, promotion and investment attraction efforts on four strategic sectors aligned with the Government of Canada’s priorities—electric vehicle battery supply chain, energy transition, life sciences biomanufacturing, and value-added agriculture.

In the year ahead, Invest in Canada will continue to leverage its proven strategies to achieve its core responsibility and departmental results. Invest in Canada will provide value-added services with partners in all orders of government to offer a seamless customer journey to investors to simplify investments decisions, provide a suite of data and intelligence through customized tools, and expand and amplify Canada’s unique value proposition to strategic global audiences.

Further, Invest in Canada will expand efforts to attract new and diversified investment opportunities into regions across Canada while taking into consideration the varied impacts that investments have on the communities in which they are made. Recognizing that Canada has many different value propositions across its jurisdictions, Invest in Canada will collaborate with partners to better put Canada’s diverse and regional advantages in view of prospective investors.

Attracting foreign direct investment in an increasingly competitive global environment requires a whole-of-government approach. Invest in Canada will continue to collaborate with federal partners to implement the FDI attraction strategy, coordinating and cooperating across federal organizations to ensure that the right support and capacity are in place to facilitate and accelerate global investments.

Understanding the FDI environment and our impact in the space is ever important and, in the year ahead, the organization will actively reflect on and evaluate the services the organization provides and gather intelligence to better understand, refine and evolve our work with a view to ensuring that Invest in Canada is always achieving operational excellence and making an impact on FDI in Canada.

For more information on Invest in Canada’s plans, see the “Core responsibilities: planned results and resources” section of this plan.

Core responsibilities: planned results and resources

This section contains information on the department’s planned results and resources for each of its core responsibilities. It also contains information on key risks related to achieving those results. 

Internal Services: planned results

Description

Internal services are the services that are provided within a department so that it can meet its corporate obligations and deliver its programs. There are 10 categories of internal services:

• management and oversight services
• communications services
• legal services
• human resources management services
• financial management services
• information management services
• information technology services
• real property management services
• materiel management services
• acquisition management services

Planning highlights

Planning for Contracts Awarded to Indigenous Businesses

Invest in Canada is included in Phase 3 as set out in the schedule prescribed by Indigenous Services Canada for when departments are required to meet the target of awarding 5% of the total value of contracts to Indigenous businesses annually. The schedule is based on an assessment of departments’ levels of readiness to meet the 5% target using prior departmental procurement plans related to the Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business.^v

As Invest in Canada is in Phase 3, the organization will meet or exceed the 5% target no later than the fiscal year-end of 2024-25. To facilitate the achievement of the mandatory minimum target by 2024-25, Invest in Canada has undertaken an analysis of its historic contracting to Indigenous businesses and has identified the potential areas under each program where there are opportunities for Indigenous businesses to contribute to and support Invest in Canada’s services over the upcoming years.

Over the 2023-24 fiscal year, Invest in Canada will ensure the alignment of internal policies and processes to support its achievement of the Mandatory Procedures for Contracts Awarded to Indigenous Businesses.

Invest in Canada is also putting in place a plan to ensure internal measurement from 2022--23 onward to ensure that the organization has the data collection measures in place to report by the end of fiscal year 2024-25.

Planned budgetary spending for internal services

The following table shows, for internal services, budgetary spending for 2023–24, as well as planned spending for that year and for each of the next two fiscal years.

Planned human resources for Internal Services

The following table shows, in full-time equivalents, the human resources the department will need to carry out its internal services for 2023–24 and for each of the next two fiscal years.

Planned spending and human resources

This section provides an overview of the department’s planned spending and human resources for the next three fiscal years and compares planned spending for 2023–24 with actual spending for the current year and the previous year.

Planned spending

Departmental spending 2020–21 to 2025–26

The following graph presents planned spending (voted and statutory expenditures) over time. 

Invest in Canada’s funding profile has matched the maturation of the organization. Invest in Canada is responsible for all employee benefits and pension contributions annually.

The 2023-24 voted expenditure amount reflects updated figure from previous departmental reporting due to 2023-24 Annual Reference Level Update 

Budgetary planning summary for core responsibilities and internal services (dollars)

The following table shows information on spending for each of Invest in Canada’s core responsibilities and for
its internal services for 2023–24 and other relevant fiscal years.

Invest in Canada was formally established on March 12, 2018. Spending from 2021-22 to 2025-26 reflects funding for Invest in Canada at a steady state.

Planned human resources

The following table shows information on human resources, in full-time equivalents (FTEs), for each of Invest in Canada’s core responsibilities and for its internal services for 2023–24 and the other relevant years.

Human resources planning summary for core responsibilities and internal services

Invest in Canada was formally established on March 12, 2018. Human resources requirements from 2020-21 to 2025-26 reflects staffing for Invest in Canada at a steady state.

Estimates by vote

Information on Invest in Canada’s organizational appropriations is available in the 2023–24 Main Estimates.^vi

Future-oriented condensed statement of operations

The future-oriented condensed statement of operations provides an overview of Invest in Canada’s operations for 2022–23 to 2023–24.

The forecast and planned amounts in this statement of operations were prepared on an accrual basis. The forecast and planned amounts presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan were prepared on an expenditure basis. Amounts may therefore differ.

A more detailed future-oriented statement of operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations with the requested authorities, are available on Invest in Canada’s website.^vii

Future-oriented condensed statement of operations for the year ending March 31, 2024 (dollars)

In 2023-24, Invest in Canada is forecasted to spend less than in 2022-23, as it is expected that operating budget carry-forward will be lower than previous years.

Corporate information

Reporting framework

Invest in Canada’s approved departmental results framework and program inventory for 2023–24 are as follows.

Changes to the approved reporting framework since 2022–23

There were no changes to the approved reporting framework since 2022-23

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Supporting information on the program inventory

Supporting information on planned expenditures, human resources, and results related to Invest in Canada’s program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.^xiii

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Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables are available on Invest in Canada’s website:^xiv

• Gender-based analysis plus
• Horizontal initiatives
• United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals

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Federal tax expenditures

Invest in Canada’s Departmental Plan does not include information on tax expenditures.

Tax expenditures are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for government-wide tax expenditures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures.^xv This report provides detailed information on tax expenditures, including objectives, historical background and references to related federal spending programs, as well as evaluations, research papers and gender-based analysis plus.

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Organizational contact information

Mailing address
160 Elgin Street, 18th Floor
Ottawa ON
K2P 2P7

Email: [email protected]

Website(s): www.investcanada.ca^xvi

Appendix: definitions

appropriation (crédit)

Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)

Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

core responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)

An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a core responsibility are reflected in one or more related departmental results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan (plan ministériel)

A document that sets out a department’s priorities, programs, expected results and associated resource requirements, covering a three year period beginning with the year indicated in the title of the report. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

departmental result (résultat ministériel)

A change that a department seeks to influence. A departmental result is often outside departments’ immediate control, but it should be influenced by program-level outcomes.

departmental result indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)

A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a departmental result.

departmental results framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)

A framework that consists of the department’s core responsibilities, departmental results and departmental result indicators.

Departmental Results Report (rapport sur les résultats ministériels)

A report on a department’s actual performance in a fiscal year against its plans, priorities and expected results set out in its Departmental Plan for that year. Departmental Results Reports are usually tabled in Parliament each fall.

experimentation (expérimentation)

The conducting of activities that explore, test and compare the effects and impacts of policies and interventions in order to inform decision-making and improve outcomes for Canadians. Experimentation is related to, but distinct from, innovation. Innovation is the trying of something new; experimentation involves a rigorous comparison of results. For example, introducing a new mobile application to communicate with Canadians can be an innovation; systematically testing the new application and comparing it against an existing website or other tools to see which one reaches more people, is experimentation.

full time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)

A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person year charge against a departmental budget. Full time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.

gender-based analysis plus (GBA plus) (analyse comparative entre les sexes plus [ACS plus])

An analytical process used to assess how diverse groups of women, men and gender-diverse people experience policies, programs and services based on multiple factors including race, ethnicity, religion, age, and mental or physical disability. 

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)

For the purpose of the 2022–23 Departmental Plan, government-wide priorities are the high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the 2021 Speech from the Throne: protecting Canadians from COVID-19; helping Canadians through the pandemic; building back better – a resiliency agenda for the middle class; the Canada we’re fighting for.  

horizontal initiative (initiative horizontale)

An initiative in which two or more federal organizations are given funding to pursue a shared outcome, often linked to a government priority.

non budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires)

Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance (rendement)

What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

plan (plan)

The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally, a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead up to the expected result.

planned spending (dépenses prévues)

For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts presented in the Main Estimates.

A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

program (programme)

Individual or groups of services, activities or combinations thereof that are managed together within a department and that focus on a specific set of outputs, outcomes or service levels.

program inventory (répertoire des programmes)

An inventory of a department’s programs that describes how resources are organized to carry out the department’s core responsibilities and achieve its planned results.

result (résultat)

An external consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, program or initiative; instead, they are within the area of the organization’s influence.

statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives)

Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

target (cible)

A measurable performance or success level that an organization, program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures (dépenses votées)

Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an Appropriation Act. The vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.