INTRODUCTION

Dr. Saifullah Sumbal, Director Southwest Region, Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks of the Government of Ontario, Canada, was invited to speak on Intergovernmental Relations in a Federation and the Role of Civil Service – A Canadian Perspective on March 6, 2024. Sumbal initiated his talk by sharing the importance of intergovernmental relations within a federation. He argued that these relations are more important in a federation than in any other form of government, mainly because the federating units need to define relationships in terms of providing services, protection, business opportunities and economic development to their residents. Canada operates as a decentralized federation in a multi-level governance system: two levels of government were established by the Constitution Act of 1857, later updated in 1982. It comprises a national government, ten provinces, and three territories which hold subordinate status in relation to the provinces. Each province maintains a robust local government system, with nearly all local governments created through provincial legislation. He further added that the federation initially formed with just two provinces, with additional territories joining over time through separate agreements outlining their powers, authority, and responsibilities with relations to the federal government.