ITB annual report 2025

From: Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

---

Economic Impact

The ITB Policy is estimated to contribute over $5.0B to GDP and over 40,400 jobs annually in Canada^Footnote3

Figure 1: GDP Economic Impact

Figure 2: Employment Economic Impact

Regional Industrial Strengths

ITB industrial activity^Footnote4 aligns closely with regional industrial strengths

Figure 3: Breakdown^Footnote5 of ITB Business Activity in Canada by Industry^Footnote6

Obligation Progress Report

Close to $84B in economic obligations resulting from 117 contracts active in 2024^Footnote7

Figure 4: Economic Activity from ITB Obligations

• 95% increase in economic obligations resulting from active contracts in the past 5 years

ITB obligations^Footnote9 have an average achievement period of over 15 years with close to 90% of industrial activities being identified within the first 5 years

Figure 5: Economic Activity from ITB Obligations

Industrial Activities Commitments

The ITB Policy stimulates industrial activities across the broader Canadian defence and security ecosystem

ITB Industrial Activities Across the Broader Canadian Defence and Security Ecosystem

 

Close to 50% of the value of ITB obligations is committed to domestic production directly on defence and security procurements^{Footnote 11}

• Over 95% of indirect ITB activity supports the broader Canadian defence and security ecosystem which includes aerospace, land, IT, marine and space industrial activities

 

Close to $11.6B in Canadian supplier development commitments

 

 

Close to $6.2B in R&D commitments

 

 

International export strategies on 24 procurements

 

 

More than $300M in skills development and training commitments

Scaling-Up Small- and Medium-Sized Businesses (SMBs)

More than 710 Canadian organisations, of which over 60% are SMBs, are recipients of activities from ITB obligations active in 2024

Figure 6: Breakdown of ITB Recipients by Type^{Footnote 12} and SMB Activity^{Footnote 13} Volume by Type^{Footnote 14}

• The vast majority of ITB SMB activity is focused on scaling up through supplier development via direct work on procurement and global supply chain participation

Academic & Research Organisations R&D and Skills

More than 55 Canadian academic and research organisations are recipients of activities from ITB obligations active in 2024

Examples of Academic and Research Organisation Activities

Gender and Diversity Plans

There are 46 ITB obligations active in 2024 with Gender and Diversity plans

• Introduced in May 2018 as a mandatory component in the ITB Value Proposition, the Gender and Diversity Plan requires bidders to describe, at the prime contractor level, their approach to achieving gender balance and increasing diversity within their Canadian corporate structures and broader supply chains in Canada

Key Findings

In conclusion, the ITB Policy:

• Contributes over $5.0B to GDP and over 40,400 jobs annually in Canada
• Is market-driven and aligns closely with regional industrial strengths
• Realized a 95% increase in economic obligations from active contracts in the past 5 years
  • ITB obligations have an average achievement period of over 15 years with close to 90% of industrial activities being identified within the first 5 years
• Stimulates industrial activities across the broader Canadian defence and security ecosystem, in supplier development, in R&D, in exports, and in skills development and training
  • Close 50% of the value of ITB obligations is committed to domestic production directly on defence and security procurements
• Benefits over 710 Canadian organisations, including close to 440 SMBs and over 55 Canadian academic and research organisations
• Promotes gender equality, diversity, and inclusion in Canada’s defence industry

---

Annex A - ITB Policy Objectives And Related Metrics

Annex B - Economic Impact Methodology Principles

• ISED’s methodology is informed by subject matter experts from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) and Statistics Canada.
• Foundation data is based on ITB credits and commitments of ITB obligations active in 2024, over the 2019–2035 period, as specified on each slide.
  • All analyses are based on 2019–2023 credits and 2024–2035 commitments of ITB obligations active in 2024.
  • Annual average economic impact analysis is based on ITB transactions credited over the 2019–2023 period, with adjustments reflecting the ITB Policy’s credit multipliers and intangible industrial activities. This five-year period reflects the timeframe required to better capture industrial activity under the ITB Policy, notably Banking Transactions that are mostly credited prior to contract award.
• ISED’s model measures Canada’s economic structure through Statistics Canada’s 2021 Input-Output (I/O) economic impact multipliers.
  • I/O multipliers have been adjusted to reflect the ITB Canadian content requirement (only Canadian Content Value is counted under ITB).
• Total economic impact of the ITB Policy includes the activities that occur within ITB recipients (direct economic impact from enterprises that benefit from the ITB Policy), their Canadian suppliers (indirect economic activity from ITB recipients’ value chain partners), as well as consumer spending by associated employees (induced economic activity) across the Canadian economy.
  • GDP impact is reported on an annual average basis.
  • Jobs impact is reported on an annual average basis and is measured in terms of full-time equivalent (FTE) employment.
  • Jobs cannot be additive as they are maintained for an extended period after creation.
  • Economic impact estimates are reported at the national level and cannot be broken down at the regional level.
• Inflation adjustment:
  • Statistics Canada’s I/O multipliers are in 2021 dollars; accordingly, all dollars are adjusted to 2021 using ISED estimates, derived from Statistics Canada’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Price Index.
• All totals are in Canadian dollars. Foreign currency amounts were converted to Canadian dollars using the Bank of Canada’s annual exchange rate for 2024.

Annex C – ITB Portfolio