Canada and Ireland Economic Treaty Strengthens Cultural and Financial Ties

Ireland has been slowly recovering from a long economic roller coaster that started with the global financial crisis in 2008 and has not improved as quickly as the rest of the world has. Canada, on the other hand, is also facing economic uncertainty thanks to a significant downturn in the commodities trade around the world.

Ireland has been slowly recovering from a long economic roller coaster that started with the global financial crisis in 2008 and has not improved as quickly as the rest of the world has. Canada, on the other hand, is also facing economic uncertainty thanks to a significant downturn in the commodities trade around the world.

As a result, it should perhaps be no surprise that these two nations should seek to create a mutually beneficial economic treaty, and, as announced Tuesday by Canada’s Minister of Canadian Heritage, Melanie Joly, that is just what they have done. The Minister announced the creation of the Canada-Ireland Audiovisual Co-Production Treaty during a press conference.

During the announcement of the treaty, Minister Joly said, “Canada has a longstanding co-production partnership with Ireland, and I am thrilled that producers will be able to use this new treaty to create even more world-class content.

In addition to positioning Canada as an audiovisual co-production partner of choice, the new treaty has been adapted to new audiovisual practices and technology, and puts the Canadian audiovisual industry at the forefront and offers Canada a competitive advantage on the co-production world stage.”

Seeking to delve more deeply into each nation’s expanding entertainment industry; the treaty will allow Canada and Ireland to combine their technical, creative, and financial resources to create movies, television productions, audio recordings, and more as a joint venture.

The two countries will help one another, sharing their best practices, legal frameworks, expertise, and more. The goal, as always, will be to help the two countries expand their respective economies by moving into a space that has offered them both much promise over the last few years.

The new treaty replaces an older agreement, reached in 1989, which sought to accomplish many similar goals, but offered far fewer avenues for cooperation and information sharing. It also was created at a time prior to the rise of the vast array of digital media that exist today, which the new treaty addresses.

If all goes to plan, from Canada’s perspective, the Canada-Ireland Audiovisual Co-Production Treaty should position the North American nation as a co-production partner of choice for Ireland, while attracting other such treaties from other nations seeking Canada’s generous incentive programs for creative businesses.

Notably, many United States’ television productions have migrated north to Canada to take advantage of these very programs. The new treaty should demonstrate to the world Canada’s focus on the rapidly evolving world of media and audiovisual technologies, and make it an even more inviting destination for foreign businesses.

At present, Canada co-produces shows for many nations around the world, and has done so for almost 50 years. While the Canada-Ireland Audiovisual Co-Production Treaty is the most recent and advanced, Canada actually has some form of co-production treaty with 54 nations spanning the entire globe.

Within the past 10 years, as Canada’s economy has sought new opportunities for expansion, the entertainment industry has been of particular interest. To that end, it has aggressively pursued outside production opportunities, having successfully attracted 654 such co-productions and generating some $4.8 billion in fresh revenues for the nation.