National Security and FDI: What You Need to Know
Foreign direct investment is vital to job creation, skills development, innovation and growth. That is why, of course, so many of us are in the business of seeking to attract FDI to our local communities. Certain investments, however, can pose a threat to national security. With a fast evolving geopolitical landscape, rapid technological innovation and increasingly complex supply chains, the range of threats have only multiplied in recent years. Although the Federal Government has the tools and primary responsibility to protect against such threats, having basic familiarity with key national security considerations and issues, including the administration of the Investment Canada Act, can help manage expectations of potential business partners, support more efficient use of time and resources, and contribute to further protecting local communities and businesses.
About the Speaker
Bernard Li
Bernard Li
Bernard heads the team that support Global Affair’s Canada’s participation in the Government of Canada’s review of foreign investments on national security grounds under the Investment Canada Act. His team is also responsible for advising Canada’s Trade Commissioner Service and posts abroad toward better aligning their FDI promotion efforts with key national security considerations. Increasingly, his team has been engaging with investment promotion agencies and economic development offices from across the country to support their work in this regard.
Bernard is a foreign service officer who has served abroad in the APEC Secretariat in Singapore, Canada’s Embassy in Washington DC and Canada’s Mission to the European Union in Brussels. In Ottawa, Bernard has worked on various free trade negotiating teams and at the Privy Council Office. He is a lawyer by training, with degrees from the universities of Geneva, Dalhousie and Toronto.
