Farming, flat, potash and prosperity — those terms are what come to mind when people hear the word ‘Saskatchewan.’
A new survey by Insightrix Research Inc. asked 850 people across Canada —excluding Quebec and the territories — what they think of Saskatchewan.
“What we found is pretty positive information,” said Lang McGilp, senior research executive at Insightrix.
McGilp said when respondents were asked what comes to mind about Saskatchewan, the answers were things people in the province are used to hearing.
“We’re flat. There’s farming, agriculture. But we do have number of people mentioning potash and oil and other resources,” he said.
Respondents listed natural resources, quality of life factors — like recreation, landscapes and community-mindedness — and a strong economy as the province's strengths.
The weaknesses, respondents answered, were the province’s cold winters and sparse population. Several people thought Saskatchewan is boring; the province is lacking in things to do, they said.
The two areas in the country that knew the least about Saskatchewan were Ontario and the Maritimes — though most respondents still mentioned Saskatchewan’s economy.
The survey found 81 per cent of people believe Saskatchewan’s contributions to the Canadian economy are important.
“Regardless of level of familiarity of what is going on in Saskatchewan, all provinces recognized what we’re doing here is valuable to the national economy,”McGilp said.
The survey asked respondents to compare the economy in their area to Saskatchewan’s economy.
“Some of the provinces like Manitoba and the Atlantic provinces were far more likely to say Saskatchewan is doing better than their own province,” McGilp said.
“Even in Ontario, we had 27 per cent of Ontario residents saying, ‘You know what, Saskatchewan’s economy is better than our own right now.’ So, I found that to be kind of interesting.”
Twenty-seven per cent of respondents said they'd move to Saskatchewan for the right job opportunity, according to McGilp. People between the ages of 18 and 34 were more likely to move to the province.
Read the report here.
