State of the Island Economic Report 2022

The State of the Island Economic Report 2022 from the Vancouver Island Economic Alliance (VIEA) examines the Island's transitional economy, which is characterized by sustained population growth, acute labour shortages, and inflationary pressures following the COVID-19 pandemic. While the economy is expected to continue growing through 2023 at slower rates, supported by in-migration and a recovering tourism sector, the report highlights mixed industry performance: tourism is rebounding but constrained by labour shortages, while the forestry sector is limited by fibre supply and old-growth deferrals, and aquaculture faces long-term uncertainty due to the planned transition away from open-net pen salmon farming. The report also notes the ongoing challenge of affordability and the need for new data to better measure environmental sustainability and economic equity, particularly for the Indigenous population, who are younger but face higher unemployment rates and lower median employment earnings across key Island communities.