Regional Economic Development Agencies in Canada: Lessons for Southern Ontario

Produced by the Mowat Centre at the School of Public Policy and Governance, University of Toronto.The creation of the Federal Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev) is a timely addition to the economic policy landscape. While FedDev emerges against a backdrop of scepticism about the value of regional policy, based on an analysis of the history of Canadian regional economic development, this paper offers an alternative conception of how the federal government can work strategically and collaboratively with its provincial and local partners in charting a new approach to place-based, innovation-driven economic development for southern Ontario