As part of the Government of Canada’s Pre-Budget Consultations in advance of releasing the next Federal Budget, Buy Social Canada and Social Enterprise Council of Canada (SECC) have co-submitted recommendations to leverage the Buy Canadian Policy, social procurement, SI/SF recommendations, and community benefits in construction to continue to support resilient communities across the country.

Buy Social Canada and SECC have four key recommendations for the upcoming budget:

Recommendation 1: Leverage the Buy Canadian Policy to expand social procurement and strengthen domestic impact

Recommend that Public Services and Procurement Canada, PSPC, ensure the inclusion of social enterprises in the implementation of the Federal Buy Canadian Policy as a strategic means to build a stronger and more resilient Canadian economy. This should include embedding social value criteria across federal procurement, establishing clear targets for purchasing from social enterprises, and ensuring that the “Supporting Small and Medium Businesses” pillar explicitly includes and enables social enterprises, co-operatives and social purpose organizations to participate and compete for contracts effectively.

Recommendation 2: Establish a National Social Value Procurement Readiness Initiative

Recommend that Employment and Social Development Canada, supported through a targeted federal investment, establish a National Social Value Procurement Readiness Initiative to enable implementation of Buy Canadian and social procurement commitments. Because the primary purchasers of social enterprise goods and services are often federal contractors and corporate supply chains rather than government departments directly, this initiative should equip both federal and corporate purchasers to implement social value procurement commitments and access social value suppliers who can meet their supply chain needs. It should also enable social value suppliers, including social enterprises and co-operatives, to become procurement-ready through bid development, partnerships, and certification, with a focus on sectors such as construction, infrastructure, and housing.

Recommendation 3: Scale Procurement-Driven Access to Finance and Fully Implement the Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy

Recommend that Employment and Social Development Canada scale procurement-driven access to finance as part of the Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy. This includes expanding blended and patient capital tools that enable social enterprises to secure and deliver contracts and supporting the longer-term implementation of the “Seal the Deal” initiative through a $5 million non-repayable and no-interest repayable financing fund, building on the 2022–2023 ESDC-supported pilot.

Recommendation 4: Maximize Community Benefits through Federal Infrastructure Investments

Recommend that Infrastructure Canada require the implementation of the existing Community Employment Benefit Initiative or Community Benefit Agreements on all federally funded infrastructure and construction projects to ensure investment into infrastructure projects build resilient and connected communities and build a strong economy that works for everyone.

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Read our full Pre-Budget Consultation Written Submission for more details, and amplify a collective call to action by signing the Community Resilience Letter which was developed at the 2026 Victoria Forum.