Kenora, Ontario – TECH – “Today’s broadband infrastructure announcement is great news for Kenora. Our government understands the importance of high-speed Internet access for communities like ours. Connecting Canadians demonstrates the Government’s commitment to delivering for northern Ontarians,” stated Greg Rickford, Member of Parliament for Kenora, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources and Minister for FedNor.
Everyday tasks that were once done in person, such as shopping, communicating, learning and banking, are now done online. To help Canadians have better access to these and many other online opportunities, the Honourable Greg Rickford, Member of Parliament for Kenora, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources and Minister for FedNor, today announced that the Harper Government will provide over $2 million to Bell Aliant to connect nearly 2,500 homes in the District of Kenora to fast, reliable Internet services.
The DSL-fibre technology infrastructure project is expected to be completed in part by November 2016 and in full by June 2017, delivering average Internet speeds of 15 megabits per second (Mbps), three times as fast as the national target speed of 5 Mbps.
For Canadians who live in communities with slow or no Internet, access to high-speed services will lead to new economic opportunities and the creation of new jobs, products and services. The following communities in the Kenora District will be served by the new household broadband connections:
Dryden; Rat Portage; Ear Falls; Red Lake; Ignace; Sabaskong Bay; Kenora; Sioux Lookout; Lac Seul; Sioux Narrows–Nestor Falls; Machin; The Dalles; Osnaburgh (Mishkeegogaming First Nation); Wabaseemoong First Nation; Pickle Lake; Whitefish Bay.
Quick facts
- Through Economic Action Plan 2014, the Government of Canada created the Connecting Canadians program, backed by a $305-million commitment to connect an additional 280,000 households in rural and remote regions of the country to high-speed Internet services at minimum speeds of 5 Mbps.
- The Government has exceeded its Economic Action Plan 2014 target by over 75,000 households in the first round of project approvals, bringing high-speed Internet access to more than 356,000 homes across Canada, and nearly 40 percent under budget.
- Last summer, the Government invited Canadians to provide feedback online to help better determine areas in need of high-speed Internet access. Once information was received, Industry Canada invited Internet service providers to submit proposals for funding under Connecting Canadians to build the wireless or wired infrastructure that will provide services to rural and remote communities in need.
- The first projects are expected to be completed by the time Canada celebrates the 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017.
“Today’s announcement marks the next important phase in our government’s plan to bring the benefits of high-speed Internet to communities in rural and remote regions across the country. Providing Canadians with access to high-speed Internet for learning, business opportunities and so much more is key to creating a more connected, digital Canada,” concluded James Moore, Minister of Industry.
