Xiaoming Guo 郭晓明
The port is important for modern industry. Modern capitalism emerged from trade across the ocean. Democracy emerged from the port cities due to the needs of governance in the port cities. The Hansa was a network of trading port cities from the 13th to the 17th centuries. Capitalism and democracy emerged from Hansa ports.
Figure: the Hansa trade routes.
For centuries, port cities were the center of an economy of a country, a region, and the world, such as Amsterdam, London, New York, etc.
The Canadian economy is not an exception. The Canadian economy has been centered in Quebec City, then Montreal, then Toronto (York at the old time). All because they are port cities.
The Motto of the Coat of Arms of Canada states in Latin: From Sea to Sea.
Canada is blessed with three oceans: the Atlantic, the Pacific, and the Arctic. Canada is situated in a very favorable position in the world because of the three oceans it is connected to. Yet Canada does not have a seaport city to serve as an economic centre. Toronto is a port city not to the sea but to the Great Lakes. Toronto used to be a port city with industries in the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. But no more. Now Canadian industry is concentrated around the Great Lakes area, which makes Canada essentially a continental country with its resources, goods, and capital flow within the North American continent.
1. Transfer to a maritime country.
With Trump’s tariffs, the Canadian continental economy faces a great challenge. It is time for Canada to transition to a maritime economy, activating the seaports to embrace the oceans and the global economy.
Canada is a member of the G7, a developed country with rich resources and a highly educated population. It has played influencial role in the global economy, via the US. But Trump blocked the door for Canada to join the global economy. The Canadian economy relays heavely on trade. It should and must play a role in the global economy. The ports to the oceans must be activated to rejuvenate the Canadian economy. All politicians and experts understand how important the deversification is to the Canadian economy. Yet, without activating the ports facing the oceans, diversification is an empty slogan. Canada needs seaports for its resources to reach the global market and its supply chains connected to the world economy. Canada needs to open its gateways to the world and develope economy at the seaports.
Canada is surrounded by three oceans, and should be a maritime country. Canada should be one of the important hubs in the world economy to facilitate the international flows of resources, labor, goods, and capital.
2. Equalization is a temperate measure
The Alberta independence sentiment is the grievance about the federal equalization program. For a long time, Alberta has been the giver of the equalization program, while the Atlantic provinces are the recipients. As a proverb says: Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. The same applies to the equalization program. The equalization transfer should help Atlantic provinces to develope economy, not just feed them forever. For many countries, if there is an equalization program, the coastline provinces should be the givers and the inland provinces should be the recipients. If the Equalization transfer is used to build seaport economies in the Atlantic provinces, the transfer from Alberta to the Atlantic will be gradually reduced or even reversed. Canada has many excellent seaports in the Atlantic provinces, and is strengthening economic ties with Europe; the seaport economy in the Atlantic provinces has a bright prospect.
3. Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic
Canada has an Arctic Strategy. Canadians want to safeguard Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic. Increasing the defence budget for the Arctic is not enough to safeguard the sovereignty of the Arctic. There must be economic activities to make defence meaningful. The most important activity is to activate the Northeast Passage. The Northeast Passage can divert world cargo shipping from the Panama Canal and connect the seaports of the Atlantic provinces to Asia, the hottest economy in the world.
The seaports’ economy in the Atlantic Provinces is vital for Northweast Passage and the sovereignty in the Arctic. With the development of the seaport economy in the Atlantic provinces, we can increase the shipping passing the Northwest Passage and make the Northwest Passage commercially viable.
4. Attracting capital
Baby boomers retire. Canada needs more labor to sustain the economy. Employing more labor needs capital. A seaport’s economy attracts world capital. That is what Canada needs. Canada can establish some economic special zones at the seaports to attract international capital and labor. Canada needs capital and labor, and a seaport economy is the best way to get both.
Developing a seaport economy should be a strategic Canadian national policy.
