A bird’s-eye view of economic life in Niagara
Niagara Community Foundation held its 16th annual Niagara Leaders Breakfast back in November, with the event featuring the release of Niagara Connects’ Living in Niagara 2017 report.
For a starter, Niagara is projected to have a population growth of 160,000 people, with an increase in the number of jobs by 150,000 by 2041. This projected growth is already evident in Niagara’s modest industrial growth and related employment and training opportunities. The much-touted new General Electric manufacturing facility slated to open in Welland sometime this year is a case in point. Greenhouses transitioning to cannabis production have also created a buzz in the region, even if their true impact on Niagara’s economy and employment is still unclear.
There are some wrinkles worth highlighting in this projected growth. For instance, there will be more jobs at both lower and higher income levels, which raises questions about two kinds of groups: those who are precariously employed, and mid-income earners who are being squeezed out by this trend. More jobs at the lower income bracket often means insecure, part-time and minimum-wage existence for more families.
Data from the 2006 and 2014 income quintile for Niagara shows there are still about 65,000 people living on $12,000 a year or less, and this costs all of us, collectively in Niagara, at least $1.38 billion a year in both direct and indirect economic costs.
Another facet of the region’s economic transition highlighted in the Living in Niagara report is the now open secret that small- to mediumsized enterprises have dominated the economic landscape in Niagara since the economic restructuring over the past two decades that decimated some of the major large employers. It is, however, heartwarming to observe smaller enterprises in Niagara now have access to a variety of support systems to boost their growth, productivity and employment. This ecosystem includes the recent Niagara Foreign Trade Zone designation which opens access to support from upper levels of government for export development. Other players in Niagara’s ecosystem of support for small and mediumsized businesses include the horticultural automation research at Vineland Research and Innovation Centre, the Health and Bioscience research support at Goodman School of Business Biolinc at Brock University, the onsite work spaces for companies at the Niagara College Walker Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre in Welland, and the Generator at One and iHub in St Catharines.
From a bird’s-eye view, this ecosystem looks promising.
Another interesting development noted is the emergence of so-called “mega-clusters,” which are based on initiatives whereby Niagara groups in a given economic sector align their resources and priorities with various adjacent regions. One example is the Niagara-Hamilton Trade Corridor research to support development of the Niagara Region Transportation Master Plan. Another example is the Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance to strengthen the agri-food cluster in Canada’s most densely-populated region. For a region the size of Niagara, megaclusters provide strategic opportunities for the region to leverage its assets, “gang up” with the bigger players, punch above its weight and carve it own niche in the global economic landscape.
The Living in Niagara Report also highlights a significant development in Niagara’s positioning for the 21st-century data-and-information-driven economy. It is generally accepted that digital infrastructure is as critical a component of a region’s competitiveness in the modern economy as transportation infrastructure and state-of-the-arts utility systems. The buzz word these days that captures this trend is the term “smart city.” A critical initiative in this regard is the building of an ultra high-speed fibre optic internet network for Niagara known as the South Western Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT), which aims to cover western Ontario, with a particular benefit for residents living in rural areas.
From a bird’s-eye view, what the current and emerging economic trends highlighted in the Living in Niagara 2017 report indicate is that the region is at a critical crossroads of economic reinvention. Of course, the devil is always in the details. The challenge now is for the kind of strategic leadership that can facilitate regionwide platforms of deliberations on how to balance economic growth and development to ensure an economic prosperity that is shared by all residents. It will also require the 12 municipalities to work collaboratively with postsecondary institutions, the private sector and social enterprises to design effective and sustainable programs to equip the capacity, skills and literacy of Niagara’s residents.