Brand Canada keen to partner Bhubaneswar in smart city

Brand Canada, a roadshow hosted by Indo-Canadian Business Chamber (ICBC), reached out

to the business and trade community here on Tuesday, showcasing various fields of potential collaboration and

investment. The event emphasised on Canada's eagerness to partner

with cities like Bhubaneswar which are emerging as major hubs of business and education, organisers said in a release.

Speaking at the programme, Scott McLeod, Second Secretary (Commercial) and Trade Commissioner, said

Bhubaneswar is a flourishing and rapidly growing hub for Information Technology (IT).

"With funding opportunities now made accessible for emerging start-ups by the Government of Odisha, the state and

the city of Bhubaneswar in itself is one of the most preferred destinations for a sustainable business.

"The state offers an industry ready workforce with a balance-sheet advantage matched by few. The recent trends have

seen that IT and various other fields of engineering have been one of the key attraction points of the city," he said.

Toronto based IBI Group has been functioning as the overall Programme Management Consultant of the Bhubaneswar

Smart City Project, McLeod said. "Now through Brand Canada, we want to ride on this

trend and engage in strong bilateral relationships with the city," he said.

The event was organised also in partnership with Air Canada and the Trade Commissioner Service of the Government of

Canada in India.