About CanExport Community Investments (CECI)
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Program Objectives
The goal of CECI is to increase Canadian employment by supporting Canadian communities’ collaborative efforts to attract, retain and expand foreign direct investment (FDI).
Objectives
- To enhance the capability and effectiveness of Canadian communities to attract employment—creating FDI by providing assistance to communities in developing FDI attraction, retention and expansion initiatives.
- To help build business cases that will make foreign investors aware of the proven advantages of expanding into and within Canada.
- To encourage and promote the pursuit of excellence in the development of investment programs by allocating funds on the basis of competition that is judged on clear, long-term planning principles and demonstrated cooperation between the private sector and municipal governments.
- To help Canadian communities become more effective in dealing with FDI aftercare and support for specific foreign investment promotion initiatives.
- To encourage intergovernmental cooperation, promote partnerships with the private sector and demonstrate federal commitment to encourage FDI and retention.
Programming Priorities
CECI prioritizes a number of key FDI sectors and markets.
FDI Priority Industry Sectors
- Aerospace
- Agriculture and Processed Foods
- Automotive
- Chemicals and Plastics
- Cleantech
- Financial and Insurance Services
- Industrial Machinery
- Information and Communications Technology
- Life Sciences
FDI Target Markets
- The Americas: United States, Brazil.
- Asia and Oceania: Japan, China, Korea, Taiwan, India, Australia.
- Europe: United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Israel, Austria.
Annual Cycle
- Specific dates vary from year to year—these are posted on the CECI main page—but key milestones remain the same on an annual basis.
- The CECI Call for Proposals is opened in September.
- Applications are evaluated by an adjudication committee.
- Funded projects will run from April 1 to March 31.
- Funded activities must be completed by March 31 at the latest.
- Final reports must be submitted by the end of April at the latest.
Important Notes
- The main funding process occurs once a year using a comparative adjudication process.
- Applications are evaluated by an adjudication committee using the assessment criteria.
- Successful applicants are required to sign a legal agreement with the Government of Canada detailing the activities and funds authorized.
- The CECI program contributes to the recipients’ initiatives to a maximum amount of 50 percent of eligible expenses.
