2019-20
Departmental Plan - Plans at a glance and operating context

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Infrastructure Canada works closely with all orders of government and other partners to enable investments in social, green, public transit and other core public infrastructure, as well as trade and transportation infrastructure. The department continues to focus on bringing people together through innovative, sustainable and inclusive infrastructure in communities of all sizes from big cities to small rural communities. In 2019-20, the Department will focus on the following four priorities:

Priority 1: Implement Investing in Canada, a long-term infrastructure plan that will deliver significant new funding for provinces, territories, municipalities and Indigenous communities to support inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

Through the Investing in Canada plan, the Government of Canada is investing more than $180 billion over 12 years to provide communities across the country with the tools they need to prosper and innovate.

Infrastructure Canada has a dual role in this plan. It is responsible for the overall coordination of the Investing in Canada plan and reporting on its results, and it delivers key funding programs tied to five main infrastructure priorities: public transit, green, social, trade and transportation, and rural and northern communities' infrastructure. Progress on the delivery of these funding programs can be tracked online through an interactive map^Footnote1. In 2019-20, the focus will be on the efficient delivery of these funding programs.  Improvements will be made on the way funding flows to projects and other aspects of program design. The following initiatives will be included:

• Working closely with our partners to improve the timeliness of the flow of funds to ensure payments are made as projects take place.
• Work with the President of the Treasury Board and Minister of Digital Government to ensure that the department accounts for, and flows, infrastructure investment as construction work takes place. Payments of approximately $8 billion are planned in 2019-20 for ongoing and completed projects.
• Lead the development of a Canadian Rural Economic Development Strategy.
• Engage with provinces and territories to identify priorities that achieve a fair balance of provincial, territorial and municipal projects to benefit communities of all sizes, from rural and remote communities to large cities.
• Work directly with rural communities to address barriers to timely delivery of infrastructure investments.
• Implement the Integrated Bilateral Agreements signed by the Government of Canada and provinces and territories to advance local priorities in rural and northern communities, public transit, green infrastructure and community, and cultural and recreational infrastructure.^Footnote2
• Provide support to the Canada Infrastructure Bank as it works with other levels of governments, Indigenous communities and private investor partners to transform the way infrastructure is planned, funded and delivered in Canada.
• Announce the first round of winners of the Smart Cities Challenge in the spring of 2019. The following four prizes will be awarded: one prize of $50 million open to communities of all sizes; two prizes of $10 million open to all communities with populations under 500,000, and one prize of $5 million open to all communities with populations under 30,000.
• Announce projects approved under the first program intake of the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund in the spring of 2019.

Priority 2: Advance significant bridge projects.

The Government of Canada is funding the construction of major bridges to support economic growth and the efficient flow of people and goods. The performance of the country’s trade infrastructure directly affects the ability of Canadian firms to compete in the global marketplace. Investments in trade-related transportation infrastructure will enable Canadian businesses to access high-growth markets within North America and globally. In 2019-20, the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities will continue to actively work with his colleagues across all levels of government and stakeholders to achieve the following milestones:

• Transition the Samuel De Champlain Bridge Corridor from construction to operation.
• Provide oversight to Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridge Incorporated (JCCBI) in planning for the deconstruction of the old Champlain Bridge.
• Complete the toll-free replacement for the Champlain Bridge.
• Work with the Minister of Transport, the Canadian National Railway Company, and the Government of Québec on a contribution towards repainting the Pont de Québec.
• Support the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority as it constructs the Gordie Howe International Bridge.

Priority 3: Strengthen capacity in data, research, and performance measurement to support evidence-based policy making/program design and to communicate results.

Communities should be guided by the best evidence as they plan, build and maintain modern, resilient and green infrastructure. That’s why Infrastructure Canada, in partnership with Statistics Canada, is enhancing its availability of data about the state and performance of the country’s infrastructure assets. The data will enable all users, including Infrastructure Canada, to make evidence-based decisions about their infrastructure investments, identify opportunities for innovation and deliver concrete results that improve the quality of life of all Canadians.  In 2019-20, the Department will work actively to:

• Maintain Canada’s Core Public Infrastructure (CCPI) survey, produced with Statistics Canada to determine the trends and impacts of public investments in infrastructure assets.
• Continue to support new ways to improve data collection and analysis to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the national state and performance of public infrastructure.
• Launch the Research and Knowledge Initiative, a new contributions program that will support data and research projects by stakeholders that generate knowledge and enable evidence-based decision-making in infrastructure and community building.
• Ensure collaboration with and support of the Canada Infrastructure Bank as it collects, develops, uses and shares high-quality data on infrastructure to help governments build capacity to make evidence-based decisions.
• Research, develop, use and share high-quality data on innovative funding and financing and partnership approaches to support evidence-based policy decisions.
• Ongoing due diligence review of P3 Canada Fund projects to ensure they are demonstrating value for money.
• Make improvements to programs based on the 2018 evaluation of the New Building Canada Fund.
• Learn from and continue to implement thematic evaluations to assess the support provided to the territories.
• Develop a departmental data strategy, aligned with the Government of Canada’s Data Strategy, to support evidence-based policy-making and program planning.
• Develop analysis and policy approaches that support evidence-based infrastructure investments and enhancements to INFC programming over the short- to medium-term.
• Undertake a Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) assessment during the planning of new programs and the approval of major projects to ensure federal investments benefit all Canadians.
• Engage with academics, private sector experts, other levels of government and key stakeholders to inform enhancements to INFC programming and policies.
• Work to ensure transparent information about infrastructure investments in rural communities is available for citizens.

Priority 4: Implement initiatives to align Infrastructure Canada’s organizational structure, resources and business processes with its mandate.

Infrastructure Canada is committed to stabilizing its workforce and recruiting sufficient and appropriate resources across core functions as it grows and transitions to a more established and mature organization that provides an environment where employees have the opportunities to develop and grow their careers. In alignment with the department’s priorities and initiatives, focused strategic human resources management will better position the department to meet its mandate. In 2019-20, the department will focus on the following internal initiatives:

• Continue to focus on recruitment, expand talent management efforts, support inclusion and diversity, and continue to bring awareness to workplace well-being.
• Continue to improve planning and reporting processes and streamline internal planning practices.

For more information on Infrastructure Canada’s plans, priorities and planned results, see the “Planned results” section of this report.