TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Ontario is inviting stakeholders to provide input to renew the province’s mineral development strategy to attract further investment.

Speaking at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada’s yearly convention in Toronto, provincial Minister of Northern Development and Mines (MNDM) Michael Gravelle announced that the province was releasing a discussion paper and a progress report highlighting significant provincial work and achievements in the sector since 2006.

“The time is right for us to refresh our mineral development strategy. Our renewed strategy will help keep Ontario at the forefront of the global mining community, bring in new investments and create more jobs in the North and across Ontario,” he said during the official opening of the Ontario Pavilion at the convention.

Over the next three months, the MNDM would host workshops across the province to give industry, Aboriginal communities and other community partners an opportunity to respond to the province’s proposed themes for a renewed mineral development strategy.

The renewed strategy would address a number of critical drivers in the mining sector, such as raising capital for prospecting, exploration and mineral development; building Aboriginal partnerships and opportunities; competitive production and transportation costs; technologies to improve discovery rates and identify new ore reserves; and future labour market opportunities.

The renewed mineral development strategy would shape the course of mining in the province by setting out priorities to strengthen the sector and cement Ontario’s position as a top mining jurisdiction.

“I am pleased to see Ontario taking this collaborative approach to strengthen the mining sector. We look forward to working together to ensure Ontario remains competitive and a global leader in mining,” Ontario Mining Association president Chris Hodgson said.

Ontario Prospectors Association executive director Garry Clark added that the discussion paper on the renewal of the mineral development strategy was timely, as the industry was recovering from a difficult financing period. He noted that government, with industry input, was finalising significant changes to the Mining Act and regulations.

“Our association members look forward to assisting the Ministry with this effort,” he said.

According to the MNDM, Ontario led Canada in terms of the value of mineral output, which was $11-billion in 2014, as well as in terms of exploration spending, which was estimated at more than $500-million in 2014. The province had 43 mines providing direct jobs to more than 26 000 people.