International Trade:
Report on the Legislative Review of the Export Development Act

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The report on the 2008 Legislative Review of the Export Development Act was tabled in Parliament on February 9th, 2009. This report was prepared by independent consultant International Financial Consulting Ltd. (IFCL). You can download the full report below.

• News release and backgrounder

If the following document is not accessible to you, please contact Jean-Louis Giroux (jean-louis.giroux@international.gc.ca or 613-995-7251) to obtain other formats such as regular print.

Legislative Review of Export Development Canada [PDF - 1.16 MB]*

Document summary

This report has been prepared by International Financial Consulting Ltd. in connection with the 2008 Legislative Review of Export Development Canada (EDC). The Minister of International Trade has a statutory obligation to conduct periodic legislative reviews of the provisions and operations of the Export Development Act (ED Act), EDC’s governing legislation. As such, the objective of this Legislative Review is to assess how EDC is evolving, and should continue to evolve in the future, to address the competitive dynamics and demands of international trade on behalf of its stakeholders, and to make recommendations where appropriate, including possible changes to the ED Act.

International Financial Consulting Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the “Review Team”) has been engaged by the Minister of International Trade to prepare this report, which aims to inform the Minister’s assessment of the mandate, future direction and public policy issues related to EDC and, thereby, forms a key part of the 2008 Legislative Review process. The composition and qualifications of the Review Team are outlined in Annex A of the PDF.

The Legislative Review is structured along four main themes, as follows:

• The changing global and competitive environment;
• Canadian business needs: ensuring EDC’s ability to meet them;
• Canadian private-sector financial capacity for trade and risk management: is there a role for EDC to play to increase this capacity? and
• EDC’s place within government.

Further details regarding the objective, background, and scope of the Review are provided in Annex C. In conducting its activities and preparing this report, the Review Team has been guided by the above main themes and the defined scope of the Review.

The report comprises the following chapters and annexes:

• Chapter 2 discusses the Review Team’s approach and activities in connection with this report, including stakeholder engagement activities.
• Chapters 3 to 5 address the international context within which EDC’s role and mandate is appropriately considered, including the changing international trade scene, the evolving role of export credit agencies, and other means by which countries support international business activity.
• Chapters 6 to 11 review the business areas in which EDC operates, and the public policy considerations relating thereto, including short term business; medium and long term business; domestic financing; governance; EDC offices overseas; civil society; and other issues.
• Chapter 12 summarizes the recommendations presented throughout the report and Chapter 13 considers potential changes to EDC’s mandate and regulations arising from the recommendations.

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