There is certainly higher employment, less underemployment, less poverty, and all of that, but the attribution of the programs to the success of this is very difficult.
For us to start seeing successes, we believe that if we have a coordinated approach and we have collective action on something, and we decided amongst the English-speaking community of Quebec to do some work, for example on youth, something specific on youth, something specific on entrepreneurship, then we could develop our measures of success.
As government and as citizens, we would like to be able to say we did this, and it gave that. It's pretty difficult. Certainly within the community we don't have the resources to make the direct correlation between we did this, and that happened. But we believe, amongst our 41 groups anyway, that we are starting to see the stories come up that they have done such and such, and the youth are staying.
I'll give you an example. In CASA in the Gaspé region they are very worried about the number of youth who are not identifying themselves with the Gaspesian region. They believe that if you don't identify with the Gaspesian region, you're going to go and find jobs somewhere. You won't even look. You won't prepare for an employment opportunity. You won't make a home and a career or raise a family in that region, so they are working on identity issues. They are working to help the young Gaspesians feel happier, more identified with, and more contributing to their region.
In a way that has nothing to do with economic development, but it does, because they are starting to see more young Gaspesians interested in staying in Quebec, wanting to have jobs in Gaspé, and wanting to start opportunities in Quebec.
A few years ago what they did was they went to see Youth Employment Services, and they asked them to prepare a program. That program is now working in the Gaspé.