Focus on economic development

NANAIMO — The Vancouver Island Economic Alliance is focusing on increasing demand for skilled workers and making the Island more competitive as the organization’s annual summit approaches.

In 2007, the year it was founded, the alliance created a Collaborative Workforce Portfolio to liaise with Island businesses. Since then, the portfolio has made significant progress in addressing regional workforce demands, said Cori Lynn Germiquet, president of VIEA.

“It’s just one of the areas of innovations we’re looking at to market Vancouver Island as a place to attract people to work and do business,” said Germiquet. “Being competitive in the marketplace for the long-term requires several strategies that will also be addressed.”

Gray Skills is one of the initiatives with which VIEA has had success. It’s a pilot program that matches mature skilled workers to fill employment gaps in various employment sectors in Victoria.

“We’ve got the contract to perform that project right now and if it’s successful (in Victoria), which it has been so far, it could be expanded to other Vancouver Island communities,” noted Germiquet.

The alliance has also submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Housing and Social Development for a job-creation partnership project to strengthen workforce opportunities so Vancouver Island can be competitive in a global market.

The VIEA State of the Island Economic Summit is scheduled for Nov. 24-25 at the Victoria Conference Centre.

The keynote speaker will be Paul Darby, one of Canada’s foremost economists, who will give a lecture from his recent research entitled Western Canada: Productivity, Competitiveness and Potential.

Based on the information provided in the lecture, delegates will move into break out groups and discuss Darby’s ideas and how they apply to the local economy.

That information will be recorded by registered media delegates and used to make a declaration called the State of the Island Summit Wrap-up Report.

Germiquet added,“It will serve as our mandate for the next 365 days and guide us to follow through on the ideas that were discussed.”

That report will be issued to the public through the Island’s Black Press publications.

Other top agenda items include continuing to brand Vancouver Island — an initiative developed at last year’s conference in Nanaimo — and pushing for alternative energy leadership so Island-based companies can compete globally.

Labour productivity, innovation and human resources will round out the two-day itinerary.

VIEA is a collaborative partnership promoting regional economic development for Vancouver Island. It provides a means for communities including First Nations, businesses, government and key stakeholders to contribute to a broad-based economic development program that will improve the region’s overall capacity for growth.

For more information, visit the organization’s new website at www.viea.ca.

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