Summary of the Horizontal Evaluation of the Economic Development Initiative (EDI)

March 2017

About the Evaluation

  • The evaluation was led by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada in collaboration with the Regional Development Agencies.
  • It assessed the relevance and performance of the EDI from April 1, 2013 to June 30, 2016.
  • The methodology was calibrated to reflect the materiality of the EDI and its proportion of the total Roadmap budget.

What the Evaluation Found

Initiative Description

  • The Roadmap for Canada's Official Languages is the Government of Canada's official languages strategy, with an investment of $1.1 billion over five years for 28 initiatives involving 14 federal departments and agencies.
  • The EDI is one initiative under the Roadmap, delivered by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada and the Regional Development Agencies.
  • With funding of $30.5 million over five years, the initiative is designed to support the economic development of Official Language Minority Communities and promote the economic benefits of Canada's linguistic duality.
  • There is a continued need for the EDI to mitigate economic development challenges faced by Official Language Minority Communities (OLMCs).
  • The initiative supports the federal government's legislative responsibilities for linguistic duality and regional economic development.
  • EDI research and consultation activities contribute to a better understanding of the economic challenges facing OLMCs.
  • Over the evaluation period, the EDI funded 110 projects. This enabled OLMCs to develop capacity, expertise and partnerships, and in turn, better equip entrepreneurs to create, maintain or expand enterprises.
  • The EDI is delivered through existing regional mechanisms and by staff who have experience managing similar regional programs.
  • Performance information is defined and collected differently by each partner. While this reflects the local environment of each partner, it hinders the reporting of results at a national level.

Recommendation

(as agreed upon by management)

  1. Establish national standardized performance and efficiency indicators that are consistently defined and collected amongst partners to enhance performance monitoring and reporting. In this context, EDI partners are encouraged to re-examine the logic model to ensure that the various levels of outcomes remain relevant with the standardized indicators while seeking to minimize the reporting burden on partners.

Complete version of the evaluation report