The Federal Government announced on Friday that it is investing $5-million in the Windsor-Essex community to create future jobs in the automotive sector.
MP Marco Mendicino, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities was on hand at the Institute of Border Logistics Security to make the announcement alongside Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens.
The investment, which is being made by the Government of Canada through FedDev Ontario is being used to grow an automobility innovation cluster in the Windsor-Essex region. The contribution is expected to drive automotive innovation in the area and help the region as it transitions from traditional automotive manufacturing to innovations within the automotive industry such as automation, mobility and smart technology.
“The auto sector is evolving and changing rapidly, and this is an opportunity for us to give it a shot in the arm to make sure we are leveraging all the talent, the skill, the innovation and the technology here because we know that we are going to continue to play such a vital role in driving the economy with the auto sector,” Mendicino told CTV News .
According to Stephen MacKenzie, the president of the Windsor-Essex Economic Development Corporation, which will be responsible for distributing the funds to members of the cluster, the investment will help the region adapt to a changing economy; an economy that depends on its ability to evolve.
“We can still be the auto capital of Canada as long as we continue to evolve, our companies evolve, our researchers evolve and that the cutting edge technology disruption happens here so that it can be commercialized here and jobs created here and kept here,” MacKenzie told AM800.
The investment is expected to help the region create 20 new partnerships, up to 165 new jobs and maintain approximately 655 existing jobs within the industry. Considering the recent uncertainty surrounding Windsor’s automotive manufacturing sector, the federal support is greatly needed, but with a five-week shutdown this summer and the loss of 1,500 jobs expected this October at Fiat Chrysler’s van assembly plant, is it enough?
According to CTV News, Mayor Dilkens believes that “Windsor-Essex is well positioned to become Canada’s capital of automobility with a number of existing firms in the auto, machine, tool and die, and mold industries.”
Mendicino also remains optimistic that the investment in Windsor’s automotive industry is the beginning of future growth for the region. “You can see by all the stakeholders who are here in this room, the excitement that this is going to continue to spur on growth,” he said during the funding announcement. CTV News reports that the region anticipates the $5-million in funding will double in economic activity.
