Annual Report on Travel, Hospitality and Conference Expenditures
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 2016 - 2017
As required by the Treasury Board Directive on Travel, Hospitality, Conference and Event Expenditures, this report provides information on travel, hospitality and conference expenditures for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017.
Travel, hospitality and conference expenditures incurred by a federal department or agency relate to activities that support the department or agency’s mandate and the government’s priorities.
Mandate:
The Department supports the sector from the farmer to the consumer, from the farm to global markets, through all phases of producing, processing and marketing of farm, food and agri-based products. Agriculture is a shared jurisdiction in Canada, and the Department works closely with provincial and territorial governments in the development and delivery of policies, programs and services.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Travel, Hospitality and Conference Expenditures for Year ending March 31, 2017
Expenditure category |
Expenditures for year ended March 31, 2017 ($ thousands) |
Expenditures for year ended March 31, 2016 ($ thousands) |
Variance ($ thousands) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Travel | |||
Public Servants |
$9,366.00 |
$7,967.00 |
$1,399.00 |
Non-public Servants |
$1,173.00 |
$718.00 |
$1,399.00 |
| A. Total travel | $10,539.00 |
$7,967.00 |
$455.00 |
| B. Hospitality | $367.00 |
$226.00 |
$141.00 |
| C. Conference fees | $202.00 |
$148.00 |
$54.00 |
| Total [A+B+C] | $11,108.00 |
$9,059.00 |
$2,049.00 |
| International travel by minister and minister's staff (included in travel) | $185.00 |
$29.00 |
$156.00 |
Explanation of significant variances compared with previous fiscal year
Total travel:
Public Servants: 9366 The $1.4 million overall increase in travel expenditures was partly attributable to the lifting of restrictions related to the Caretaker Convention that had been in effect in 2015-2016. Under the Caretaker Convention, the government acts with restraint during an election, confining itself to necessary routine or urgent public business. The increase was primarily in support of AAFC's mandate, including increased scientific missions to China and large joint conferences of scientific societies. It also includes travel for accelerated infrastructure activities, the canola trade issue with China, the Canadian Agriculture Partnership (CAP) and Federal, Provincial, Territorial (FPT) meetings. ;
Non-Public Servants: 1173 2016-2017 departmental travel expenditures by non-public servants increased by $455 thousand in comparison to 2015-2016, of which $156 thousand was related to travel expenditures for the Minister and his staff which was mainly due to the lifting of restrictions related to the Caretaker Convention. Under the Caretaker Convention, the government acts with restraint during an election, confining itself to necessary routine or urgent public business. The increases in other travel expenditures for non-public servants were attributed to travel for the Grain Monitoring Program, consultations on the development of the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP), as well as conducting interviews to increase scientific capacity.
Hospitality:
Compared with fiscal year 2015-2016, departmental hospitality expenditures have increased by $141 thousand. This increase was mainly due to the CAP and Federal, Provincial, Territorial (FPT) meetings as well as increased number of roundtables, industry consultations and missions. It can also be further attributed to increased scientific missions to China and large joint conferences of scientific societies.
Conference fees:
Compared with fiscal year 2015-2016 departmental conference fees expenditures increased by $54 thousand primarily due to a reclassification of expenditures in 2016-2017 from training to conference fees, scientific missions to China and large joint conferences of scientific societies.Minister and minister’s exempt staff - International travel:
The Minister and his staff participated in a number of trade missions to advance the Government’s overall priority of strengthening the economy, while also deepening key agricultural partnerships to position the sector to take full advantage of market access opportunities. Ministerial trade missions were carried out to support and enhance the competitiveness of the agriculture and agri-food sector by: advocating on issues of importance to the Canadian sector with key decision makers including Canada’s position on agricultural biotechnology and market access in India and Vietnam (March 2016); supporting the sector in developing markets abroad through participation in key international trade shows and conferences such as the China Fish and Seafood Expo in Qingdao and the Food and Hospitality China in Shanghai (November 2016); deepening bilateral relations with key trading partners including the European Union, China, India, Japan and Vietnam; promoting the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and the importance of open trade and strong cooperation during the Agriculture Ministers' Summit in Berlin, Germany (January 2017).