COWICHAN VALLEY – It is a question we are often asked and one that has a complex set of answers.
In general, most communities engage in economic development and their activities are based on their current economic conditions, priorities set by local government, input from appointed Boards, Commissions or other stakeholders and the region’s competitive advantages.
To determine the economic development priorities for the Cowichan Region, Economic Development Cowichan (EDC) works with local government and the Economic Development Commission, guided by a Sustainable Economic Development Strategy.
Economic development encompasses three general themes; attraction of new businesses and investment, retention and expansion of existing businesses and sector development. The Sustainable Economic Development Strategy identifies opportunities and strategies for EDC to pursue.
New investment brings outside dollars to the region and creates jobs. Our organization develops promotional brands, print and electronic marketing materials and identifies markets to target. EDC compiles statistical data and business intelligence on the region and provides this information to investors and potential residents.
Most economic development organizations have investment attraction activities, and as a consequence, our existing companies may be attracted away from our region by offers of incentives, a better labour pool or other considerations.
Businesses want to be appreciated and have opportunities to grow and in this world of global competitiveness, programs to ensure our companies are growing and thriving becomes key to the economic success of a region. We know that 80 percent of new jobs come from existing businesses.
They provide much needed employment, generate wealth, have closer connections to the community and in many cases, their existence provides an incentive for other businesses and individuals to relocate to the region. We would not have a vibrant economy without them.
Fundamental to our mandate is the offer of assistance to any business that is looking to solve a problem, expand their business or any other support that we can provide.
EDC attends a number of trade shows throughout the year to promote the region. We invite local businesses to attend the shows with us to help them expand their products into new markets. We also facilitate meetings between local businesses and potential distributors and investors and work with existing businesses to connect them to provincial and federal programs and ministry staff.
Agriculture, tourism and value-added manufacturing have been identified as important sectors within our economy and we focus efforts on ensuring those sectors are strong and have the capacity to grow.
Specific sector development initiatives have been developed with the CVRD Area Agriculture Plan and the Tourism Marketing Strategy.
The value of an economic development organization can be hard to measure. We are often asked how many jobs we have created. Economic development does not create jobs – businesses create jobs. It is in everyone’s interest to support businesses and business development so that we have a healthy economy.
– Kathy Lachman is the acting Economic Development Manager for Economic Development Cowichan, a division of the Cowichan Valley Regional District. She can be reached at 250-746-7880 ext 248.
