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![\"MIKE](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/4223009_web1_260513-city-investment-panel-0020.jpg\")
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MIKE DEAL \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
WEDT vice-president international Alberto Velasco-Acosta speaks during a Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism event on Wednesday. Continuing to fall behind other provinces in attracting foreign companies will lead to Manitoba being \u2018out of sight,\u2019 he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not getting a fair share of all the wins coming to Canada,\u201d said Alberto Velasco-Acosta, Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism vice-president international.<\/p>\n
The economic development agency presented the numbers to a Winnipeg hotel ballroom full of politicians and private-sector leaders Wednesday morning. It hosted an event spotlighting international investment attraction.<\/p>\n
Manitoba\u2019s lag reflects a decade of decisions, Velasco-Acosta said, adding he hopes to see different results \u201ca few years down the road.\u201d<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism has built a foreign direct investment team over the past six years; staff went on nine trips abroad in 2025 to highlight Manitoba internationally.<\/p>\n
They sometimes travel with partners such as the Winnipeg Airports Authority and government representatives. Still, the competition is fierce, Velasco-Acosta said.<\/p>\n
Saskatchewan has 11 international offices; Alberta funds 19; Ontario and Quebec hold 15 and 34, respectively.<\/p>\n
Manitoba opened a trade office in Washington, D.C., last year. The U.S. trade representative\u2019s compensation has since made headlines; it exceeds $479,000 per year.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s led some, including Manitoba\u2019s Progressive Conservative party, to question whether the spend benefits the province.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose people are getting lead generators,\u201d Velasco-Acosta said of the offices. \u201cThey help \u2026 to start knocking doors.\u201d<\/p>\n
He and colleague Amanda Macdonald, the agency\u2019s vice-president of business development, suggested Manitoba would benefit from opening more offices globally.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not that we necessarily need to go out tomorrow and open a bunch of offices,\u201d Macdonald said. \u201cIncreasing that presence \u2026 is going to be kind of the last step in making sure we can play at the same level as other provinces.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manitoba Business Minister Jamie Moses wasn\u2019t available for an interview by end of day Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Saskatchewan funds its economic development arm on a multiyear timeline, allowing for greater business attraction, Velasco-Acosta said. He\u2019d like to see the same model implemented at Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism.<\/p>\n
Continuing to fall behind other provinces in attracting foreign companies will lead to Manitoba being \u201cout of sight.\u201d It\u2019ll negatively impact the province\u2019s economic growth, Velasco-Acosta added.<\/p>\n
Representatives from Calgary, Hamilton and Quebec City economic development agencies spoke on a panel during the Wednesday event.<\/p>\n
\u201cI go once to Japan, if I meet an investor \u2014 these projects, these $50 (to) $100 million projects, they will not be closed (quickly),\u201d said Fran\u00e7ois Robitaille, a senior director at Qu\u00e9bec International. \u201cYou need to follow up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jennifer Patterson, a business investment manager for the City of Hamilton, preached the importance of listening to investors and having an \u201cecosystem\u201d of support.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s another area where Manitoba struggles, Macdonald said.<\/p>\n
Companies want to know about wastewater infrastructure capacity, rezoning timelines and utility servicing.<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism staff may be \u201cvague\u201d and not make commitments, Macdonald said, adding the province and city are making progress on being more business-friendly.<\/p>\n
\u201cTime is money,\u201d Macdonald said. \u201cIf we can\u2019t give them that clarity quickly, they\u2019ll go elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
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Calgary Economic Development has hired a futurist, someone to consider the next 50 to 100 years in the city\u2019s private sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just takes a lot of time,\u201d Christopher Brown, the agency\u2019s vice-president of business development, said of building up industries.<\/p>\n
In Manitoba, 75 per cent of the 102 businesses Winnipeg Economic Development & Tourism surveyed plan to expand over the next two years, Macdonald told the crowd Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Nearly three-quarters of those businesses expect to hire more people, and just over half plan to add services or product lines.<\/p>\n
gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com<\/p>\n
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Gabrielle Pich\u00e9 Gabrielle Pich\u00e9 reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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