As Surrey invests in its future, it has identified seven “priority sectors of focus” as outlined in its 2024 Economic Strategy as the city prepares itself to be home to one million people by 2042 – which necessitates roughly 540,000 jobs, an estimated 309,000 more than there are now.
These seven areas of "transformative" investment the city aims to attract include cleantech companies mindful of environmental sustainability; healthtech; advanced manufacturing, wherein “novel” technology is incorporated to improve the manufacturing process; agritech, which marries farming with technology; digital/ICT with an eye to software and application development as well as advancing artificial intelligence and quantum computing; care economy, with family doctors, specialists, pharmacies under that umbrella; and entertainment, embracing companies and venues able to host major events while also providing day-to-day leisure options for Surrey’s growing population.
Surrey is clearly seeing a big boom in young workers as the pace of change, demographic expert Andrew Ramlo noted, “is getting faster and faster and faster.”
The analyst told a Surrey business audience in 2024 that, progressing toward 2046, Surrey can expect to see 69 per cent growth in those aged 25 to 64, primarily through migration. This, he said, “bodes really, really well for somewhere like downtown as an employment centre, you’re going to have a really good stock of young labour force people to work within it.”
Meantime, a new Official Community Plan for Surrey will shape the city’s vision, policies and objectives over the decade to come.
Ultimately, Surrey’s economic strategy, as outlined in a City of Surrey report, focuses on four strategic priorities, which include:
• investment attraction and readiness;
• employment lands optimization;
• innovation, talent and workforce considerations; and
• local business, 'vibrancy' and district communities.
Last year, the City of Surrey received an award from the British Columbia Economic Development Association, winning the Economic Recovery and Resiliency Award for communities with a population over 20,000, for its 77-page 2024 Economic Strategy, Investing in Our Future: A Roadmap to Realizing the Opportunities of Tomorrow.
City of Surrey data reveals the city is home to more than 20,000 businesses, has experienced a 23 per cent growth rate in the number of businesses since 2017 and that there has been more than $12 billion in construction here since then.
This content is part of the Surrey Economic Development 2025 magazine, produced by Surrey Now-Leader, the Surrey Board of Trade and the South Surrey & White Rock Chamber of Commerce. You can find the full e-edition here.
