Regional Defence Investment Initiative funding bolsters made-in Canada defence solutions, strengthening national security and sovereignty, and helps build a strong Canadian defence industry
In a more dangerous and uncertain world, the Government of Canada is investing in its defence capabilities. Canada is meeting this moment, having now met NATO's 2% of GDP benchmark and committing to increase defence and security investment to 5% of GDP by 2035. That includes building a domestic defence industrial capacity on the Prairies and across Canada to help ensure the women and men in uniform have access to the technologies, equipment, and supply chains they rely on, while creating jobs and economic opportunities here at home.
Today, the Honourable Eleanor Olszewski, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan) announced a federal investment of over $6.1 million through the Regional Defence Investment Initiative (RDII). This funding will help Alberta capitalize on the economic benefits of Canada's defence investments and the growing national defence and security supply chain and reinforce Canada's position as a leader in home-grown defence solutions.
These investments will help three Edmonton-based organizations expand Canadian production of critical defence equipment for the Canadian Armed Forces and our allies, all while strengthening domestic supply chains, reducing reliance on foreign suppliers, and delivering measurable economic benefits through job creation and increased revenue.
The investments announced today include:
- Wyvern will enhance its satellite-based technologies and products to improve ship identification and maritime monitoring technologies. This RDII investment will strengthen Wyvern's space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities-making it easier to identify ships and enabling faster delivery of critical data in critical defence applications. PrairiesCan is providing $2,993,348 in repayable funding towards this project.
