Prime Minister announces Canada's Electronic Commerce Strategy at Softworld '98


September 22, 1998
Ottawa, Ontario

Prime Minister Jean Chrétien today laid out Canada's Electronic Commerce Strategy - a major step in making Canada the most connected nation in the world. Electronic commerce - E-com - refers to business that is conducted by means of advanced communications and computer technologies. It includes transactions by automated banking machines, credit and debit cards, electronic data interchange and the Internet.

"We want to make Canada a world leader in electronic commerce by the year 2000," said the Prime Minister. "Our strategy is one of 'firsts,' with the goal of recreating in cyberspace, the same expectations of trust, confidence and reliability that now exist in everyday commerce. And where companies think of Canada as the place to develop their E-com applications and software."

The Prime Minister made the announcement in St. John's at SoftWorld'98, a unique international 'business to business' event targeting strategic alliances in the areas of software development, investment, marketing, distribution, research and development, acquisitions and mergers.

Tapping into E-com is a key element of the federal government's Connecting Canadians agenda which is helping Canadians gain access to knowledge and information-based technology, and acquire the skills to use the latest technologies. The goal is to make Canada the most connected nation in the world by the year 2000.

"The federal government is not alone in tackling issues related to electronic commerce," said the Prime Minister. "Together with business, consumers and other governments, we are making progress on various electronic commerce issues such as taxation, intellectual property, privacy, legal frameworks and cryptography policy. John Manley, our Minister of Industry, will be reporting progress in the weeks and months to come."

Electronic commerce is a global phenomenon. Canada is not developing domestic policies in isolation but is committed to work with other countries to develop the international frameworks required to foster the growth of electronic commerce. From October 7 to 9, 1998, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Government of Canada will convene a Ministerial Conference on Electronic Commerce in Ottawa. The conference, A Borderless World: Realizing the Potential of Global Electronic Commerce, will bring together Ministers from around the world to set out a global road map for realizing the full economic and social potential of this powerful 21st-century technology.

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