Saskatchewan International Outcomes

Released on April 20, 2023

Saskatchewan's International Strategy Delivers Outcomes for the People of the Province

Today the Ministry of Trade and Export Development provided a series of highlights outlining achievements made with Saskatchewan's international partners this year. 

"With more than one in six jobs in Saskatchewan tied directly to our international exports, growing Saskatchewan's presence on the global stage is vital to creating a strong and robust economy here at home," Trade and Export Development Minister Jeremy Harrison said. "Through our international engagement - including Saskatchewan's network of international offices and missions abroad, we have been able to strengthen our relationship with our partners and achieve results." 

During international missions, delegations take opportunities to meet with government officials to share Saskatchewan's story to further increase trade in agriculture products and natural resources like potash and uranium. On the Premier's most recent mission to India, he met with federal ministers, which included:

• Dr. Jitendra Singh, Minister of State from the Office of the Prime Minister of India 
• Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry 
• Narendra Singh Tomar, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
• Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers

International engagement encourages innovative research and development partnerships, and enhances Saskatchewan's ability to attract post-secondary students and faculty. On the recent mission to India, educational agreements were signed between the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan Polytechnic and six major Indian universities and post-secondary institutes. 

These agreements lead to increased global opportunities for Saskatchewan students, help make Saskatchewan the destination of choice for international students and ensure the province is developing a skilled workforce. Students and faculty from both Saskatchewan and India will have more opportunities for collaboration, so that bright and diverse minds can work together towards goals for food and energy security. 

"The India mission in early March was aligned with the University of Saskatchewan's goals of being the university the world needs. We are grateful to collaborate and share our positive research impacts with our international partners, particularly our work surrounding food security, water and critical minerals," University of Saskatchewan VP of Research Baljit Singh said. "The MOUs signed with our university and our partners in India will help Saskatchewan and India reach new heights and open new areas of research collaborations, faculty, and student mobility between USask and these major international institutions."  

As Saskatchewan's economy is primarily export based, the Government of Saskatchewan is focused on creating strong trade partnerships. Part of this includes highlighting what Saskatchewan has to offer for the international market. The Premier advocated for Saskatchewan at a recent investment forum hosted by Pickering Energy in Houston and at the Raisina Dialogue in India. Energy and Resources Minister Jim Reiter also met with Nusrat Ghani, United Kingdom Minister of State at the Department of Business and Trade at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada meetings, where Saskatchewan met with over 100 international delegates representing companies and governments around the world.

In February, Agriculture Minister David Marit joined Her Excellency Mariam Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment and executive member of the COP28 presidency at Gulfood in United Arab Emirates where they talked about collaboration in sustainable food production. 

In the first quarter of 2023, Saskatchewan has seen more than 25 incoming commercial and diplomatic delegations, with many more on the horizon. 

With these kinds of success stories, it's clear Saskatchewan is on the right track when it comes to international trade and investment. The province is committed to supporting a strong and growing economy by focusing on international markets to increase trade and investment opportunities, which in turn creates more jobs and opportunities here at home.

As part of Saskatchewan's international engagement strategy there are Growth Plan targets and objectives to increase the value of exports by 50 per cent and grow the number of international markets to which Saskatchewan exports more than $1 billion. 

To learn more about Saskatchewan's international strategy please visit, https://www.saskatchewan.ca/business/investment-and-economic-development.

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