Mr. Chair, members of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, my name is Stephen Traynor and I am the vice-president of policy, communications and the Northern Projects Management Office for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, or CanNor.
I am pleased to join you in person here in Ottawa. I respectfully acknowledge that we are on the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people.
Thank you for the invitation to appear today to speak about CanNor's support in Canada's three territories for the economic development of official language minority communities.
CanNor works with Northerners, indigenous peoples, communities, businesses, organizations, the territorial governments and other federal departments. Our mandate is to help build diversified and dynamic communities that foster long-term sustainability and economic prosperity in Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon.
In the context of today's appearance, CanNor works closely with the Francophone economic development organizations in each terirtory, namely the Association franco-yukonnaise, the Conseil de développement économique des Territoires du Nord-Ouest, and the Association francophone du Nunavut. The goal is to encourage and support projects that foster economic diversification, business development, innovation, and partnerships.
CanNor is responsible for promoting and delivering the economic development initiative, or EDI, fund in the territories. As the committee is aware, the EDI was announced by the Government of Canada in 2018, through the “Action Plan for Official Languages 2018‑2023: Investing in Our Future”. CanNor's share of the EDI, relatively speaking, is small—just $80,000 a year. As such, we also support Official Language Minority Communities or OLMC-related projects through our regular funding streams, including our flagship program, inclusive diversification and economic advancement in the North, or IDEANorth. Funding for the EDI was recently renewed under the 2023‑2028 action plan.
I would like to provide the committee with a few examples of our initiatives.
The first example underscores the importance of partnerships and collaboration.
CanNor provided $240,000 over three years, under EDI, to the Association franco-yukonnaise to work with Carrefour Nunavut and the Conseil de développement économique des Territoires du Nord-Ouest to attract Francophones to move to the territories with the goal of filling job vacancies.
In addition, CanNor provided $755,000 over two years to the Association franco-yukonnaise under the Jobs and Growth Fund, to promote the Yukon as a travel destination for francophones from Quebec. The project supports Yukon businesses that offer services in French to adapt their product offerings to the French-speaking market.
In the Northwest Territories, CanNor provided $285,500 over three years to the Conseil de développement économique des Territories du Nord-Ouest (CDETNO), under the IDEANorth funding program. The Conseil developed and delivered tools and training workshops targeted at Francophone entrepreneurs and youth in partnership with stakeholders such as chambers of commerce and school districts. Through participation in targeted promotions and events, CDETNO also promoted economic opportunities.