Canada needs to ‘supercharge’ key sectors such as energy, mining, forestry, agriculture, say PPF report authors
A new report titled Build Big Things, co-authored by Jay Khosla and Yiota Kokkinos for the Public Policy Forum (PPF), projects that advancing more than 500 resource projects to final investment decisions could generate $1.1 trillion in cumulative GDP growth by 2035—a 4.5 percent boost to Canada’s economy. Achieving this, the authors argue, requires a fundamental shift away from a consumption-driven model toward one that fully leverages Canada’s natural resource strengths, while balancing growth and decarbonization goals.
Speaking on the WONK with Amanda Lang podcast, Khosla and Kokkinos described how their plan aims to reorient the economy by “supercharging” key sectors such as energy, mining, forestry, and agriculture. The urgency, they argue, is clear: Canada ranked second-last among OECD countries in per capita growth over the past decade, while the country sits 26th in the World Bank’s ease-of-doing-business rankings. “We've not really focused on GDP growth…now is the time for us to do that,” said Khosla.
The Build Big Things playbook rests on four critical pillars: coordinated financing, streamlined regulations, critical infrastructure, and Indigenous economic participation. Coordinated financing requires consolidating the existing “alphabet soup” of granting agencies and catalyzing private and foreign investment. Efficient regulation focuses on improving processes rather than rewriting legislation. Critical infrastructure, including ports, pipelines, and transmission lines, is foundational. Lastly, a central tenet of the plan is empowering Indigenous nations as genuine partners rather than consultees. Indigenous communities, Kokkinos explained, are seeking involvement “up front – not just consultation but real participation, including equity stakes.”
Ottawa has created a new Major Federal Project Office (MFPO) to accelerate approvals and bolster Canada’s competitiveness in a volatile global trade environment. But on the podcast, the authors stressed that MFPO alone won’t be enough — success depends on integrating all four pillars and adopting a ‘whole-of-government’ approach to overcome bureaucratic silos and risk aversion. As Kokkinos put it, “regulation isn’t the only thing that will get us through.”
Government support, Khosla added, is essential given that private and foreign capital has “largely dried up.” Beyond growth, the report ties these investments directly to Canada’s decarbonization goals. “If we don’t have this investment and we don’t move these projects, we do not decarbonize,” he said.
Looking ahead, Khosla and Kokkinos argue that early project successes will be critical to restoring investor confidence. “We need to send a huge signal to global investors that finally Canada is open for business,” Khosla said. The success of Build Big Things ultimately depends on swift, coordinated action and a reimagined approach to large-scale development.