The government of Canada has invested $1.7 million in the Centre d’entreprises et d’innovation de Montreal.
Industry Minister James Moore made the announcement today in Montreal. The Centre d’entreprises et d’innovation de Montréal (CEIM) has been granted funding to “ensure the creation and development of technology companies through business incubation.”
“This investment will enable the CEIM to continue serving innovative businesses operating in such sectors as information and communication technology, new media, clean and industrial technology and life sciences,” read a release issued today.
“Our Government’s top priority is to create jobs and sustainable economic growth in Canada,” said Moore. “We are pleased to invest in organizations like the Centre d’entreprises et d’innovation de Montréal, that support the creation and development of innovative businesses that strengthen Canada’s economy.”
The new funding revolves around the Government of Canada’s recently launched “Digital Canada 150,” a plan for Canada to take full advantage of the economic opportunities of the digital age. Unfortunately, several critics, including Canada Research Chair of Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa Michael Geist. He labelled it “The digital strategy without a strategy.”
The $1.7 million in non-repayable funding will come through Canada Economic Development’s Quebec Economic Development Program. The CEIM’s activities include “identifying business projects with strong growth potential, offering a range of specialized services, facilitating access to financing, increasing the likelihood of business success, promoting entrepreneurship, innovation and the economic development of Quebec.”
Most major Canadian cities have at least one partly government-funded startup incubator or accelerator. Publicly-funded programs aren’t always known for producing the highest number of successful startups in comparison to fully-venture backed ones, which usually possess the reputation to attract the best leadership talent. It’ll no doubt be interesting to quantify how well this public money was spent a few years from now in terms of outcomes.
Nevertheless, it appears to be a progressive move by both the federal and provincial governments looking to push-start small Canadian tech companies.