COVID-19: Canadian Space Agency increases investments in space sector
Team of engineers working in a scientific research and advanced technology centre.
Over the past year, the global pandemic has led to loss of jobs and revenue for companies. To mitigate the situation in the space sector, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) set an action plan in motion and made additional investments, which stimulated the industry and helped maintain numerous positions held by highly qualified personnel (including students breaking into the field) and create new jobs.
The CSA almost doubled the existing budgets of a number of its funding programs, for a total investment of $52 million over two years.
The additional funds injected into the Canadian economy will have a direct impact on about 100 projects led by SMEs and big companies. Twelve Canadian universities also stand to benefit.
The Space Technology Development Program (STDP), the Flights and Fieldwork for the Advancement of Science and Technology (FAST) funding initiative and the smartEarth initiative have benefitted from these investments.