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Broadband Canada: Connecting Rural Canadians (Industry Canada)

The federal government’s 2009 budget allocated $225 million over three years to Industry Canada Broadband Canada: Connecting Rural Canadians program (Industry Canada, 2009). The first round of 52 funded projects brought broadband access to an estimated 169,000 households (Industry Canada, 2010c). As of May 2011, the number of projects increased to 86, affecting around 210,000 households. 

However, some First Nations expressed concerns over a lack of consultation regarding the development of this initiative. According to the Assembly of First Nations (AFN):

Several First Nations and networks have applied for funding from this new program. Neither the AFN not individual First Nations were invited to provide input into the selection criteria and procedures for this particular fund. As of the writing of this report [March 31, 2010], it is unknown how many First Nation-specific projects will be funded (AFN Chiefs Committee on Economic Development, 2010, p. 18).

At its completion, the Broadband Canada project successfully completed 84 projects in five provinces and two territories. This brought “broadband access to a total of 218,000 previously unserved and underserved households” (Broadband Canada, 2012)

This project was carried out through a number of private-public partnerships. AANDC was involved in many of these projects through the FNIF initiative discussed above. Some of the projects included a role for First Nations technology organizations. Many focused on capital expenses to establish physical infrastructure, including several large-scale regional networking projects.

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