The CAP was once a foundational element in the federal government’s effort to connect Canadians. In the late 1990s, many did not have Internet access at home and wireless data plans were still years away. Today, the majority of Canadians have residential broadband access as well as wireless connectivity through their smartphones or other devices.
The decision to cut the CAP therefore does not come as a surprise.
Appeared in the Ottawa Citizen on April 17, 2012 as Canada Lacking Digital Strategy The recent federal budget was a hefty 498 pages, but it still omitted disclosing the decision to eliminate funding for the Community Access Program, Canada’s longstanding initiative to provide an Internet access alternative for those without […]
The government has quietly notified Community Access Programs across the country that it is cutting funding for the longstanding program that provides Internet access to the public. Statistics Canada’s 2010 Canadian Internet Use Study found that 54% of low income Canadians still do not have Internet access at home. Industry […]
Industry Minister Tony Clement has reversed on the cuts to the Community Access Program. Clement told a press scrum this afternoon that it was a funding envelope misunderstanding.
Marita Moll reports that Industry Canada has sent letters to thousands of community access program sites advising that funding is coming to an end for most sites. CAP was established in 1995 to provide community access to the Internet. The program will be scaled down to cover only those communities without access to a publicly funded library within 25 kilometres. Other program sites will see their funding disappear effective April 1, 2010.
Industry Canada describes CAP in the following manner:
The program plays a crucial role in bridging the Digital Divide; contributing to the foundation for electronic access to government services; encouraging on-line learning and literacy; fostering the development of community based infrastructure; and, promoting Canadian e-commerce.
The Government says the program is no longer needed. The letter to administrators states:
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Michael Geist
mgeist@uottawa.ca
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