Vancouver Island, British Columbia
Today, the Honourable Gudie Hutchings, Minister of Rural Economic Development, together with Michele Babchuk, Member of the Legislative Assembly for North Island, announced up to $24.7 million in federal and provincial funding to bring high-speed Internet access to over 5,000 households in rural communities in British Columbia.
As part of this announcement, $19.5 million in federal-provincial co-funding was announced to benefit 4,000 households in the following regional districts: Mount Waddington, North Coast, Bulkley-Nechako, qathet, Columbia-Shuswap, and Cowichan Valley. Details on these projects, including the specific communities to be served, will be announced at a later date.
A further $5.2 million in federal and provincial funding will bring high-speed Internet access to over 1,100 households on and around Vancouver Island through seven projects with CityWest.
This funding is part of an existing agreement between the governments of Canada and British Columbia. In March 2022, both governments announced a historic partnership to invest up to $830 million to connect all remaining rural, remote and Indigenous households throughout the province to high-speed Internet.
Today's announcement builds on the Government of Canada's progress toward making sure that 98% of Canadians have access to high-speed Internet by 2026, and 100% by 2030. The Government of Canada will continue to make investments in infrastructure to build strong communities and a more competitive and resilient Canada for everyone.
