NORTHERN ONTARIO – July 27, 2021: Vic Fedeli, MPP for Nipissing is pleased to announce that the Ontario government is providing up to $5.8 million for two high-speed Internet projects in the North, which will service up to 6,783 households. This announcement is part of our investment of up to $14.7 million for 13 new projects under the Improving Connectivity for Ontario (ICON) program.
“We are one step closer to delivering our bold and ambitious plan to ensure that everyone, no matter where they live, will have access to reliable, high-speed internet by 2025,” said MPP Vic Fedeli. “This investment will improve access to services like health care, education, employment and justice in the North, while increasing economic activity.”
“Our government continues to bring high-speed internet access across the province, including to several remote and First Nation communities,” said the Honourable Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure. “This investment will connect over 17,000 homes and businesses with access to reliable, high-speed internet. We’re doing everything we can to help ensure no one is left behind in today’s digital world.”
Northern projects include:
- Moose Cree First Nation in Mushkegowuk, receiving up to $422,163 to service up to 1,529 households;
- Town of Gore Bay, in Algoma-Manitoulin, receiving up to $5,452,895 to service up to 5, 254 households.
Ontario’s ICON investment will help expand high-speed internet to more areas, from Belleville to Bancroft, Muskoka Lakes to Puslinch, and Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls to Moose Cree First Nation. Ontario is partnering financially on these projects with various organizations who applied for provincial funding under the ICON program.
These projects will help Ontario move forward in its plan to achieve 100 per cent connectivity after committing nearly $4 billion to ensure all Ontarians have access to high-speed internet by the end of 2025. This is the largest single investment in high-speed internet, in any province, by any government in Canadian history.
High-speed internet is critical for access to vital services like health care, education, employment and justice, while increasing opportunity for everyone. This investment is part of the 2021 Budget, Ontario’s Action Plan: Protecting People’s Health and Our Economy. With vaccines being distributed, hope is on the horizon. Ontario’s Action Plan: Protecting People’s Health and Our Economy provides the resources necessary to finish the battle with COVID-19, building on the government’s record investments to protect health and jobs during the global pandemic.
QUICK FACTS
- Ontario recently announced a new innovative procurement process to help connect underserved and unserved communities across the province. This new delivery model will be led by Infrastructure Ontario, with procurement beginning this summer.
- Last year, the Province launched the Improving Connectivity for Ontario (ICON) program, a multi-year program that aims to support approved high-speed internet and cellular projects.
- Up to Speed: Ontario’s Broadband and Cellular Action Plan is already providing internet and cellular access to homes and businesses in communities across Ontario.
- The Province has invested in initiatives to improve connectivity across Eastern and Southwestern Ontario. It has also invested in high-speed internet projects in rural and Northern Ontario, such as through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation and the Next Generation Network Program.
- Expanding access to high-speed internet is part of Ontario Onwards: Ontario’s COVID-19 Action Plan for a People-Focused Government, which includes more than 30 projects that are changing the way people and businesses interact with government.
