Project
Our written submission to the Minister of Finance and National Revenue as part of the Government of Canada’s pre-budget consultations, drawing on five years of on-the-ground work with Black entrepreneurs. BEA is advocating for three things:
1. Help SMEs from marginalized communities expand nationally. Investments in programs that make it easier for small businesses to reach domestic markets and join national supply chains, including support for the certifications and interprovincial compliance that put expansion out of reach for many founders.
2. Fund the community spaces incubators need to deliver. Multi-year infrastructure funding so Black-led business incubators and nonprofits can develop and expand mixed-use community spaces (innovation hubs, training centres, and co-working space) in the communities they serve.
3. Prepare the workforce for technology transformation. Investments in microcredentials that equip early and mid-career professionals from the Black community for roles being reshaped by AI and automation, starting with health care workers to strengthen the care economy.
The Result
The submission marks our entry into federal policy advocacy, taking what we hear from founders in northwest Toronto directly to the national budget table. It makes the case with our own evidence: 375 ventures supported, over $70.5 million in revenue generated, $17.6 million raised, and 1,120 jobs created, with 57 percent of ventures women-owned. Each recommendation pairs a structural barrier our community faces (interprovincial trade costs, the loss of affordable nonprofit space, AI-driven workforce disruption) with a practical investment the federal government can make, and positions BEA as a delivery partner ready to pilot the solutions.
