The Government of Saskatchewan in partnership with post-secondary institutions has developed a multi-year funding investment that will provide funding certainty to the sector over the next four years.

The Ministry of Advanced Education has committed to stable base funding at 2020-21 levels for the duration of the agreement, along with an additional $60 million increase beyond annual operating funding over the next two years. This approach provides institutions with the ability to respond to challenges created by the pandemic and to help grow financial sustainability over the long term.

"For the first time ever, we're pleased to provide a multi-year funding commitment to the sector, which was developed collaboratively and is focused on shared priorities," Advanced Education Minister Gene Makowsky said in a government press release. "The pandemic has disrupted the operations of post-secondary education. This investment will help ensure programming and research remain aligned with the needs of students and Saskatchewan communities and will give institutions the ability to assist the province in achieving the goals set out in the Growth Plan.

"The multi-year funding agreement is a progressive and welcomed step in these challenging times toward establishing our financial predictability in the coming years," USask President Peter Stoicheff said in a government press release. "It will help ensure our success in supporting the aspirations of our students, our researchers, Saskatchewan, and its citizens, and in our commitment to being the university the world needs."

As part of the commitment, every publicly funded post-secondary institution in Saskatchewan signed a Memorandum of Understanding, which outlines the shared priority areas where the additional $60 million will be targeted including COVID-19 recovery, revenue generation, sector collaboration, and achieving the strategic initiatives set out in the Growth Plan.