For years, economic development conversations have focused on alignment. We have asked
communities, governments, industry, Indigenous partners, institutions, and economic development
organizations to work together, coordinate efforts, and pursue shared priorities. Alignment remains
important, but it is no longer enough.
The more important question is ownership.
Not ownership of projects. Not ownership of funding. Ownership of the work required to sustain an
economic ecosystem over time.
Across Saskatchewan, municipalities are increasingly being asked to play this role. They are
expected to lead economic development, support workforce attraction, address housing shortages,
invest in infrastructure, respond to industry needs, manage regulatory responsibilities, build
partnerships, pursue funding, promote investment, and coordinate regional initiatives. In many
communities, these responsibilities fall to a CAO or small administrative team already managing a
full range of municipal services. Saskatchewan’s highly fragmented municipal structure means that
much of this work is being carried without dedicated capacity or specialized resources.
This raises an uncomfortable but necessary leadership question:
What can municipalities realistically carry, and what must be carried by the ecosystem itself?
Municipalities Are Anchors, Not Owners
Municipalities occupy a unique position within an economic ecosystem. They provide the
foundational conditions that support growth and development. They manage local infrastructure,
planning, servicing, community amenities, and governance. They understand local challenges and
opportunities and are often the first point of contact when new investment arrives.
These are essential functions.
Yet municipalities cannot be expected to own every aspect of economic development. Ecosystems
extend beyond municipal boundaries. Labour markets are regional. Supply chains are regional.
Housing pressures rarely stop at jurisdictional lines. Infrastructure networks, investment decisions, educational pathways, and industry growth strategies all operate across multiple communities and
organizations.
When municipalities attempt to carry the entire system, one of two outcomes usually occurs: burnout
or stagnation.
The challenge is not a lack of commitment. The challenge is expecting a single actor to manage a
system that depends on many actors.
What Municipalities Can Carry
Municipalities are well positioned to lead in four areas.
- Creating Local Readiness
Communities can ensure they are prepared for opportunity. Land availability, servicing capacity,
planning processes, business friendliness, infrastructure planning, and community responsiveness
remain municipal responsibilities.
Readiness does not guarantee investment, but a lack of readiness often guarantees missed
opportunities. - Convening Local Conversations
Municipal leaders often possess the relationships and credibility needed to bring stakeholders
together. They can create spaces where industry, residents, educational institutions, Indigenous
communities, and regional partners discuss shared priorities.
Convening is leadership. It should not be confused with carrying all responsibility for outcomes. - Providing Stewardship
Economic development is ultimately about creating conditions for long-term prosperity. Municipal
leaders act as stewards of place, helping communities make decisions that balance growth, quality
of life, community wellbeing, and future resilience. - Participating in Regional Solutions
Municipalities have a critical role in regional collaboration. They contribute local knowledge, identify
priorities, and help align investments. However, participation is not the same as ownership. Regional
solutions require regional structures.
What Municipalities Cannot Carry Alone
Just as important is understanding what municipalities should not be expected to carry by
themselves.
Workforce Development
Municipalities influence workforce attraction, but they do not control immigration systems,
educational programming, employer recruitment practices, or labour market dynamics.
Industry Growth
Communities can create supportive conditions for business, but industry must remain an active co-
builder. Economic ecosystems fail when businesses view municipal government as the sole driver of
growth rather than as a partner in achieving it.
Regional Coordination
Many of Saskatchewan’s economic challenges are regional in scale while capacity remains local.
Housing, transportation, utilities, broadband, and workforce issues require collaboration beyond
municipal boundaries. Without shared governance, work plans, and coordination mechanisms,
fragmentation persists.
Ecosystem Maintenance
This may be the most overlooked responsibility of all.
Ecosystems do not sustain themselves through goodwill. Someone must organize meetings,
maintain relationships, track commitments, support governance, facilitate collaboration, monitor
progress, and keep momentum alive between major projects.
This “backbone” function is rarely funded and often assumed to belong to municipalities by default.
Yet it is arguably a regional ecosystem responsibility rather than a municipal one alone.
The Leadership Shift Ahead
The next generation of economic development leadership may be less about attracting investment
and more about designing systems capable of supporting investment.
That requires a shift from asking:
“How can municipalities do more?”
to
“How can ecosystems carry more together?”
Strong municipalities remain essential. But thriving regions emerge when municipalities, industry,
Indigenous governments, educational institutions, economic development organizations, nonprofits,
and senior governments each assume responsibility for the parts of the system they are best
positioned to influence.
The future belongs to communities that move beyond alignment and toward shared ownership.
Because ecosystems are not sustained by agreement alone.
They are sustained when everyone carries their part.