The Premier of Quebec, François Legault, welcomes his counterparts from the Maritimes as well as governors from New England as part of the 44e Annual Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Prime Ministers (CGNA-SMEC), which takes place this Sunday and Monday in Quebec City.
This year, the Conference marks its 50the founding anniversary, although the meetings were not always held on an annual basis. The last meeting of representatives of the eleven states and provinces dates back to 2021. Given the pandemic context, it took place virtually.
During this meeting, the leaders stressed “the need to intensify cross-border trade and other activities between regions as part of their common response to contribute to the recovery of the economy” as well as the importance of massive vaccination to ensure this recovery.
The leaders also reiterated their intention to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 35% to 45% compared to 1990 levels by 2030.
This will be the Legault government’s second participation in the CGNA-PMEC, since the 2018 annual conference took place before the provincial elections which brought the Coalition Avenir Québec to power. In 2019, the conference was canceled due to Hurricane Dorian.
In 2021, the late Minister of International Relations Nadine Girault represented the government at the conference.
The last time the CGNA-PMEC took place in Quebec was in 2013, when the event was held in La Malbaie, in Charlevoix.
Sunday evening, elected officials meet for a private meal, after which they will meet again the next day to address various issues that concern the jurisdictions of the eastern part of the continent. The themes addressed target areas of common interest, such as trade, national security, sustainable development, energy, transport and industry.
The combined gross domestic product generated by this grouping of provinces and states was estimated at C$2.09 trillion (US$1.58 trillion).
CGNA-SMEC brings together the six New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. In Canada, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador as well as Prince Edward Island are part of the grouping.