Canadian Air Force aircraft CF-101 Voodoo (Image Credit: ID 132166760 © Michel Bussieres | Dreamstime.com)

By Liam Verster

Industrial Defence Strategy

Okanagan, B.C. could benefit from defence investments

Feb 20, 2026 | 1:34 PM

The federal government is looking to invest in Canadian companies for its military equipment, which could, in turn, benefit the Okanagan and the provincial economies.

The Canadian government has developed an Industrial Defence Strategy aimed at prioritizing building military equipment within the country, awarding defence contracts primarily to Canadian businesses, and creating approximately 125,000 new jobs over the coming decade.

Stephen Fuhr, MP for Kelowna and Secretary of State for Defence Procurement, told Vernon Matters Canada is already a leader in the industry and has the capacity and capability of meeting these goals.

“Aerospace – we’re one of the only countries in the world that can design, build and certify a transport category aircraft. We want to preserve that and buy where we can,” Fuhr explained.

“Shipbuilding – Canada is one of the only countries in the world that can design and build a heavy icebreaker, so we’re buying Canadian icebreakers and Canadian warships. In that vein, we want to continue to do that. We’re very capable in space, in AI, there’s a whole bunch of things that we can just buy from ourselves and we’re going to start to do that more aggressively.”

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The Secretary of Defence Procurement said these industries that already exist in Canada, just need to be built out more to meet the increased demands with a Choose Canada strategy.

Fuhr said there could be opportunities for businesses in the Okanagan and in B.C. as a whole to benefit.

“To start with B.C., a great example is submarines. Those are obviously going to land on the coast, fifty per cent of them are going to be out in B.C. and fifty per cent are going to be in Atlantic Canada. So there will be in-service support for those subs, there will be a whole host of brand-new infrastructure to support those submarines that still has to be built. Just that project alone could possibly be the biggest military procurement we’ve ever done if we by all twelve subs, between the subs and the infrastructure. So B.C. is obviously going to be rewarded handsomely by the sub procurements,” Fuhr told Vernon Matters.

“As far as the Okanagan goes, we have lots of really great defence-related industries here. Obviously the anchor is KF Aerospace, everyone is very familiar the. I think they’re the biggest private-sector employer here. But there’s lots of small to medium sized businesses here, and not just in aerospace. Aerospace, for whatever reason, we are pretty capable and we have lots of aerospace here, but we are investing across the board, army, navy, air force. Obviously air force being the aerospace sector, I see opportunities for aerospace here in the Okanagan.

“The other thing I’m very focused on is making sure when we invest, where we can, we make sure the big federal investment is spread out across the country and make sure all corners of Canada get an opportunity and benefit from this big, public investment in the military.”

Though the focus of the strategy involves shopping at home, Fuhr said it may still need trade deals outside the borders to fill gaps.

“When we do go outside our borders or we partner or we have to buy from someone else, the key piece is to be a partner. Canada doesn’t just want to be a customer, we want to be a partner,” the MP explained.

“That means we share in the development, we share in contributing to the platform, in both the economic piece and the decision making moving forward. Those are the types of things we’re going to be looking for as we move forward when we just can’t do it ourselves here in Canada.”

He also noted that there was educational funding built into the strategy to help train the new employees needed for these opportunities. Fuhr said a lot of those jobs would be in research and development, though labour positions would also be needed to meet these goals.

Fuhr also said this strategy was already being applied, pointing to a contract the federal government signed with Bombardier for six aircraft, with an option for four more, to replace the aging Challenger fleet, as well as a strategic partnership with Telesat and MDA Space for military-grade satellite communication devices. He also said submissions about partnerships to build submarines should arrive in March with a deal struck later this year.

“The reason that [sub partnership] is important is because before the DIA, which is my shop, the Defence Investment Agency, got involved, that project timeline was contract awarded in 2028, subs in the water by 2035,” Fuhr explained.

“We’re going to announce a winner this year, 2026, and we anticipate we could have a submarine in the water by 2032. So I think those are tangible examples of us moving quickly right out of the gate.”

Fuhr added that the Canadian Armed Forces does need new and up-to-date equipment, and that through this Industrial Defence Strategy, they could ensure the armed forces have the needed supplies and craft, create jobs, and stimulate the economy.