OTTAWA—The federal government is calling on industry leaders from select sectors to propose “superclusters” of technological innovation that promise to create jobs and spur economic growth.

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains kickstarted the national competition Wednesday for $950 million in seed money that will help set up these hubs of investment and research.

The idea is to establish not-for-profit consortiums of small and big businesses, academic researchers and other groups that will serve as nodes of investment and innovation for key sectors of the Canadian economy. Details on where, when and what exactly these “superclusters” will look like will depend on proposals that the government receives, Bains told the Star Wednesday.

“I would summarize it in three words: Jobs, jobs, jobs,” Bains told the Star in an interview.

“We’re in a global innovation race. This is about creating a high-value economy.”

In a luncheon speech to the Economic Club of Canada, Bains said the near-billion dollars in federal money would create areas like Silicon Valley in the U.S., where many of the world’s leading tech firms and online companies are based.

Canada’s versions would focus on sectors where the country is positioned to compete globally, Bains said: advanced manufacturing, agri-food, clean technology, digital technology, health/biosciences, clean resources, or infrastructure and transportation.

The “supercluster” proposal emerged last fall, and was made clearer as a marquee element of the 2017 budget. The Liberal government has argued that investing in the creation of new technologies is necessary to grow the middle class and stay competitive in the global economy.

The Economic Advisory Council to Finance Minister Bill Morneau, which recommended the creation of the government’s public-private infrastructure bank, also urged Ottawa to revamp its innovation strategy in a report earlier this year.

In its supercluster announcement Wednesday, the government said it will accept letters of intent from prospective consortiums until July 21, and then full applications will be due sometime this fall. The consortiums must be governed as not-for-profit groups, with strategic direction led by the industry member. Industry players will also have to match government money for the superclusters, dollar for dollar.

The goal, Bains said, is to have chosen between three and five superclusters to receive the federal money by the end of the year.

“It’s creating the environment to encourage more money for research and development,” said Bains, adding that the superclusters will hopefully push businesses to reinvest profits in innovation rather than let it sit on their balance sheets.

Another benefit could be to address the “lack of collaboration” between academic researchers and private businesses, Bains said.

Sean Mullin, executive director of the Brookfield Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, said superclusters are a good idea. But he added that the government can’t simply inject money and walk away; the groupings for research and investment will need ongoing support and potential reviews to make sure public money ends up being well spent.

Mullin also said that it won’t be easy to choose the right applications and aim to provide a regional balance for the investment.

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“I wouldn’t underestimate the challenge of that. It’s going to be tough,” he said.

The Liberal government, through its innovation agenda, wants to increase goods and services goods by 30 per cent by 2025. It also wants to increase the clean energy sector’s share of Gross Domestic Product and double the number of high-growth companies in Canada to 28,000 by 2025.