Canada Innovation Corporation to support businesses in developing, protecting intellectual property, capturing global supply chain segments
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Ottawa has unveiled a new national agency with a mission of making Canadian businesses more innovative and productive.
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The Canada Innovation Corporation will support businesses across all sectors in developing and protecting intellectual property, as well as capturing segments of global supply chains, Finance Canada and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) said.
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Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne on Feb. 16 released the blueprint document providing details on how the organization will operate.
“Canadian businesses do not invest in research and development at the same level as their global peers,” the document said, noting that this weakens Canada’s economic competitiveness and reduces opportunities for Canadian workers.
The agency will become a subsidiary of the Canada Development Investment Corporation and will be accountable to Parliament, officials said, but will operate independently from government on a day-to-day basis and will be led by private sector experts.
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The concept had been previously announced in the federal government’s 2022 budget as an innovation agency established to drive Canadian business investment in research and development.
“The CIC will help Canadian businesses across all sectors and regions to innovate, commercialize, grow, and create good jobs in a changing global economy,” officials said, adding that it will work with the private sector to provide targeted support to new and established Canadian companies by delivering funding and advisory services.
It will operate with an initial budget of $2.6 billion over four years, funded through an annual statutory transfer, and is expected to begin its operations in 2023, officials said. The budget will grow over the initial four years to expand operations, they said.
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The government said available funding is expected to range from around $50,000 to $5 million per project, depending on what is proposed. It said it will also be able to support a select number of larger-scale R&D projects, with the ability to provide support up to a maximum contribution of $20 million per project.
It added that the project evaluation process will be modified to the level of funding requested and determined by its board of directors and senior leadership.
Officials added that the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program will join the agency to build a national-scale platform of business R&D support.
They said further details on the operations, as well as recruitment of its board and chief executive, will be announced in the coming months.
• Email: dpaglinawan@postmedia.com | Twitter: denisepglnwn
Ottawa launches Canada Innovation Corporation
2023-02-16 19:17:58
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