Over the past eighteen months the GC has been exploring the future of SBEO in Canada through an
interdepartmental effort. As work continues internal to the GC to identify needs and potential forward
strategies, it is vital to now engage the broader SBEO stakeholder community in Canada. SBEO
benefits are whole-of-society, and therefore any long-term SBEO pathway must be the culmination of
collaboration across governments and sectors for the benefits of all Canadian businesses, researchers,
students, decision makers, and citizens.
This document provides an overview of the potential of SBEO and how it can provide daily benefits to
Canadians. The objective is to highlight the potential of SBEO technology, and present important
questions for Canadian stakeholders in academia, industry, provinces, territories, municipalities, and
indigenous governments regarding the future direction for advancing SBEO capabilities in Canada.
Capacity in SBEO is not only about increasing what government can do in its services, but also
providing a healthy landscape for Canadian companies and researchers when it comes to accessing
and working with data in order to develop solutions and positive economic activity.