ARCHIVED - Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency - Supplementary Tables

Name of Horizontal Initiative:
International Business Development Agreement

Name of lead department:
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency

Lead department program activity:
Enterprise Development (program sub-activity: Trade)

Start date of the Horizontal Initiative:
April 1, 2011 (subject to approval)

End date of the Horizontal Initiative:
March 31, 2016

Total federal funding allocation (start to end date):
$7.0 million

Description of the Horizontal Initiative (including funding agreement):
In May 1994, ACOA entered into an agreement (Canada/Atlantic Provinces Agreement on International Business Development, also known as IBDA) with the four Atlantic Provinces, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, and Industry Canada to “undertake specific measures to optimize regional coordination on a pan-Atlantic scale and combine limited resources to coordinate trade-related activities.” Since its launch, the agreement has been extended four times (in 1997, 2000, 2005 and 2010) for a total investment of $23 million; the latest extension sunsets March 31, 2011. Funding is cost-shared 70/30 by the federal (through ACOA) and provincial governments. The commitment to this agreement, with the increased funding allocation, attests to both the IBDA’s positive results and its significance for the future of the region’s international business development.

More information can be found on the IBDA home page on ACOA’s website.  

Shared outcome:
The primary shared outcomes for the IBDA partners since the agreement’s inception have been:

1. increased number of new exporters;
2. existing exporters reporting sales to new markets; and
3. existing exporters reporting increased sales to existing markets. Since 1994, the Agency and its partners have administered over 240 projects involving some 4,800 Atlantic Canadian companies. The IBDA helped 196 companies to begin exporting, 455 exporters to increase their export sales, and 315 exporters to expand into new markets.

In addition to the above outcomes, the new extension will seek to

1. support universities and research establishments to expand their revenues from international commercialization;
2. support clients sourcing new technologies or processes;
3. support foreign direct investment; and
4. support Canadian direct investment abroad.

Governance structure:
ACOA is the lead organization for this initiative and houses the Secretariat responsible for administering the agreement. A management committee, comprising a representative from each of the partners, is responsible for planning and managing the agreement’s programs and the evaluation of projects.

Partners
Federal departments and agencies (70% funding)

• ACOA (lead department)
• Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (non-funding partner)
• Industry Canada (non-funding partner)

Provincial governments (30% funding)

• Business New Brunswick
• Nova Scotia Business Inc.
• Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development
• Prince Edward Island Business Development Inc.
  

Planning Highlights:
The IBDA will continue to build on its accomplishments to date, its extensive experience and lessons learned to further contribute to sustained growth in international business for the Atlantic region.

Through its four key elements, the IBDA will

1. expose sectors and companies to export market opportunities and ensure that they are well prepared with the capability, knowledge and information required to develop international business;
2. develop longer-term strategies and implementation plans for international business development and undertake research on companies’ needs and best practices;
3. assist sectors and companies by obtaining market intelligence and contacts, identifying international market opportunities and applying this knowledge to trade development activities; and
4. undertake business activities that support sector export development strategies and contribute to contacts, alliances and ultimately sales for both existing and new exporters.

Federal Partner: ACOA (lead department)
($ millions)

Federal Partner Program Activity	Name of Program for Federal Partner	Total Allocation (from Start to End Date)	Planned Spending for 2011–12
Enterprise Development	Business Development Program	$7,000,000	$1,400,000

Expected Results, by program:

As of April 2011, the IBDA will adopt a new list of results indicators:

• number of projects undertaken
• value of contributions or funding extended

Outputs

• number of clients who participated in promotional activities sessions
• number of research and/or market intelligence reports completed
• number of clients who participated in learning and skills development activities
• number of matchmaking meetings
• level of satisfaction among clients who used matchmaking services (%)
• number of clients who participated in ACOA-assisted international events
• level of satisfaction among clients who participated in international events (%)
• volume of sales reported (average range)
• number of foreign direct investment opportunities identified (FDI leads)

Outcomes

• number of SMEs starting to export
• number of SMEs exporting to new markets
• number of SMEs increasing export sales to existing markets
• number of occasions when clients sourced a more competitive product or service
• number of SMEs, universities and research establishments expanding their revenues from international commercialization
• number of clients who identified/adopted new technologies or processes
• number of foreign direct investment transactions completed (deals closed), where ACOA’s support contributed to the project’s fruition
• number of Canadian Direct Investment Abroad (CDIA) identified
• assisted firm export sales differential (%)
  
  

Federal partner: Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada

Federal Partner Program Activity	Name of Program for Federal Partner	Total Allocation (from Start to End Date)	Planned Spending for 2011–12
International Commerce	N/A	$0	$0

Expected Results by program:  same as ACOA

Federal Partner: Industry Canada

Federal Partner Program Activity	Name of Program for Federal Partner	Total Allocation (from Start to End Date)	Planned Spending for 2011–12
Internal Services	N/A	$0	$0

Expected Results by program:  same as ACOA

Total Allocation For All Federal Partners (from Start to End Date)	Total Planned Spending for All Federal Partners for 2011–12
$7,000,000	$1,400,000

Results to be achieved by non–federal partners:  Same as federal partners.

Contact information:
Michel Têtu
Director General, Trade and Investment
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
P.O. Box 6051
Moncton, New Brunswick
E1C 9J8
Tel: 506-851-6496
E-mail: Michel.Tetu@acoa-apeca.gc.ca

Name of Horizontal Initiative:
Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership

Name of lead department:
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency

Lead department program activity:
Community Development

Start date of the Horizontal Initiative:
April 1, 2009

End date of the Horizontal Initiative:
March 31, 2012

Total federal funding allocation (start to end date):
$9,975,000

Description of the Horizontal Initiative (including funding agreement):
The Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (ACTP) is a nine-member, pan-Atlantic marketing consortium comprised of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the four provincial tourism industry associations, and the provincial departments responsible for tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. ACTP is dedicated to promoting Atlantic Canada as a leading vacation destination in key American and European markets.

The 2009-2012 ACTP is a $19.95-million agreement that supports:

• fully-integrated marketing strategies (consumer, trade and media relations) based on sound market research, economies of scale and commonality;
• funding that is incremental to provincial marketing budgets;
• the preservation of provincial brand equity;
• marketing activities being dictated by the marketplace;
• clear and responsive measurement systems of benefit to all four Atlantic Provinces; and
• end-of-agreement project evaluations.
  

Additional information on the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership can be found on the ACTP website.

A memorandum of understanding for the renewal of the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership was signed on April 1, 2009. This initiative directly supports the Agency’s long-term strategic outcome.

Shared outcome:
The 2009-2012 ACTP is expected to generate $10 in incremental economic activity for every $1 invested in marketing. The three-year revenue target is $190 million in incremental revenues for small and medium-sized tourism enterprises in Atlantic Canada.

Governance structure:
The activities of the ACTP are managed by a ten-person management committee, consisting of the ACOA vice-president responsible for tourism and the director general of Tourism Atlantic, the four provincial deputy ministers responsible for tourism, and the four tourism industry association presidents (or their permanent designates). Decisions of this management committee are by consensus. Six members constitute a quorum, provided all four provinces are represented, with both government and industry present, as well as ACOA. A Canadian Tourism Commission representative sits as an ex-officio member of the management committee.

The management committee is responsible for the administration and management of the agreement, the allocation of annual budgets on a per-market basis, the approval of annual program work plans and budgets, and the evaluation of program activities. It oversees the work of a marketing committee, develops and oversees a communications policy, and provides program interpretation and dispute resolution.

Planning Highlights:
Each year (including 2011-2012) the marketing committee researches and prepares fully integrated consumer advertising, as well as travel trade and media relations marketing strategies, all for the management committee’s approval. These strategies will be implemented by program managers who report directly to the marketing committee.

Federal Partner: Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
($ millions)

Federal Partner Program Activity	Name of Program for Federal Partner	Total Allocation (from Start to End Date)	Planned Spending for 2011–12
Community Development	Atlantic Investment Partnership II Tourism	$9,975,000	$3,325,000

Expected Results, by program:
$63.33 million in export revenues in each year of the partnership
$190 million in export revenues over the life of the partnership

Total Allocation For All Federal Partners (from Start to End Date)	Total Planned Spending for All Federal Partners for 2011–12
$9,975,000	$3,325,000

Results to be achieved by non–federal partners:
$10 in tourism revenue for every $1 invested in marketing.

Contact information:
Rob McCloskey
Director General, Tourism Atlantic
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
P.O. Box 40
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
C1A 7K2
Telephone: 902-626-2479
E-mail: Rob.McCloskey@acoa-apeca.gc.ca