Premier Wab Kinew and his delegation have wrapped up a 3-day trade mission to Washington, DC.
The delegation included minister Lisa Naylor, former ambassador Gary Doer and members of the Premier's Business and Jobs Council, who represent a wide range of sectors in the province. Jamie Moses, Minister of Economic Development, Investment, Trade and Natural Resources was also on the trip.
He said one of the goals was to strengthen Manitoba's trade relationship with its closest trade partner in the United States.
"Manitoba has a wealth of natural resources, agricultural resources and clean energy through Manitoba Hydro. It makes us a valuable asset to our trade partners," said Moses. "And so, through this trip, it helped us boost good jobs and reinforce our economy for today and for the next generation. And so, our basic message to those Americans, those investors, are that investments in Manitoba are investments in the future."
The delegation covered a pretty extensive list of meetings, including at the Canadian Embassy, with executives Securing America's Energy Future, the National Association of Manufacturers, and various congressmen and women who Moses says represent some of the states that Manitoba has a vested interest in making sure Canada and U.S. trade is strong. Additionally, they met with the US Chamber of Commerce, the Business Council of Canada, American Federation of Labour, and the Premier met specifically with Senator Lisa Murkowski and Senator Klobuchar.
"Under the previous government, we saw that Manitoba was absent from these types of trade missions. We heard consistently that there's a benefit to having specific representation from our province. So, we think the past decision to be absent was a mistake," said Moses. "Our new government wants to showcase the opportunities that we have in Manitoba because we know that they are an amazing story to tell. We want to let potential businesses know that we want to work with them and help them thrive here. And we want potential nurses and doctors to know that this is a great province to move to."
Overall, the Minister feels they were able to establish a good foundation for a trade relationship and are excited to grow it.
"It looks like continuing to build relationships with the connections that we've made," he said. "It also looks like establishing new areas for our province to thrive in and helping investors know continue to know the benefits of Manitoba. So, our department and our government will continue to reach out, find new avenues to make good, good partnerships and make sure that the interests of Manitobans are always top of mind in the work that we do."