for employers. having a highly skilled workforce begins with parents. they need to do their best to get their children ready to learn by the time they enter school. there is clear evidence that early childhood development is vitally important in preparing children for their years at school. but parents need support in this role, and governments need to do their part in providing this support. public investment in early childhood education has a high payoff. this role for governments continues during the school years. the public sector must invest in improving the effectiveness of education. to be clear, the point is not to keep children in school longer. rather, the point is to make sure that children actually are acquiring necessary skills while they are in the classroom. of course, post - secondary education is critical to the development of our workforce. at the college level, we need to see more close co - operation between colleges and employers in order to integrate learning with the work environment. in this way, we can maximize the relevance of education, and students can receive valuable experience in genuine workplaces that employ the most modern and advanced technology. i have seen good examples of this kind of co - operation between humber college and firms in sectors such as design, merchandising, and high - end manufacturing. these are positive steps, but we need to see many more of them. the need to focus on skills development continues through to the post graduate level. we have seen how research centres can grow to become the centre of gravity for economic development in a certain sector. the obvious example in ontario is the close connection between waterloo, research in motion, and quantum computing. this type of partnership helps to build comparative advantages for ontario, and the province needs to develop more of them, quickly. outside of the academic world, it is crucial that, as employers, we take seriously our responsibilities to invest in the skills of our workers. i spoke about this issue at length last year in a speech at humber college, so i won't spend a lot of time repeating those points. instead, i'd invite you to read those remarks, which can be found on the bank of canada's website. the last point i would make about skills development is that we need to keep demographic pressures in mind. the population is aging, and we will soon face the challenge of how to make more effective use of the skills of workers in their sixties, and even beyond. we will need to examine employment incentives, work environments, and other issues

david dodge : the global economic landscape and the implications for ontario remarks by mr david dodge, governor of the bank of canada, to the 2006 ontario economic leadership summit, niagara - on - the - lake, ontario, 25 october 2006. * * * the ontario economic summit is an important event, and i do wish i could have attended, not only so that i could deliver my remarks in person, but so that i could listen to the various discussions that will take place over the course of the next two days. you will be discussing topics that are central to ontario's future economic prospects. how can we develop human capital to its fullest potential, and retain that capital? how can we foster research, innovation, and commercialization in this province? how can we improve ontario's competitiveness in the global marketplace? as policy - makers, labour, and business leaders, how we answer these questions will go a long way in determining the economic well - being of our citizens in the years ahead. my purpose this morning is to set the scene for your discussions of these questions. i will start by reviewing the outlook for the global economy as set out in the bank's monetary policy report, which we published last week. i will then look at how global developments can be expected to affect the canadian economy in general and the ontario economy in particular. following that, i'll say a few words about the themes of the conference and about a couple of the policies that i see as important to securing ontario's economic future. finally, i will be happy to take your questions and hear your comments for the remainder of my time with you this morning. the global economic landscape let me begin with the outlook for the global economy as a whole, before turning to the implications for canada and for ontario, in particular. certainly, the headline numbers for the global economy are encouraging. the strong growth of recent years appears set to continue. the bank's base - case projection is for real growth in the global economy of 5. 1 per cent this year, moderating slightly to 4. 5 per cent by 2008. however, these numbers mask some important differences in the growth prospects of different regions. growth in asia continues to be very strong, led by the economies of china and india. indeed, the chinese authorities have their hands full trying to hold growth at a more sustainable pace. growth in other emerging markets is coming from areas such as south america and africa, which bodes well for the future