Gavin Magrath, Magrath’s International Legal Counsel, Toronto, Canada
The Government of Canada announced today its $136 million Advancing Industry-Driven Digitalization of Canada’s Supply Chain initiative.
The initiative aims to develop digital solutions that will increase the efficiency and resiliency of Canada’s supply chain, including:
- Collecting and sharing real time traffic data to help alleviate congestion and avoid bottlenecks;
- Supporting industry-driven approaches to digital coordination and transparency; and
- A Call for Proposals under the National Trade Corridors Fund to strengthen key trade routes such as the Pacific Gateway and the Windsor-Quebec trade corridor.
These initiatives stem from the 2020 National Supply Chain Task Force’s final report, and reflect only a portion of the more than $630 million earmarked in Budget 2022 to address supply chain disruptions and prepare for future growth. 2021 merchandise trade exceeded $1.2 trillion (all figures Canadian dollars).
“Supply chain resiliency, efficiency, and reliability is a priority for our Government. That’s why today’s announcement is so important to ensure that essential goods and critical supplies are accessible to Canadians. We will enable our supply chains to have the digital infrastructure needed to continue to be more efficient and resilient for years to come, which are vital to growing a strong economy.” -The Honourable Omar Alghabra, Minister of Transport