Industry Canada's on-line digital economy strategy closed today with community access sites receiving a strong endorsement from the public both in the "ideas" forum and in the more formal submissions.
Under "digital skills", 2 of the top 3 entries, were recommendations to support and extend this initiative. Another was submitted to the "innovation" section. Links to CAP supporting submissions are provided below:
On March 16, after three days of intense public pressure following a decision to cut funding to most of Canada’s community access sites (CAP), Industry Minister Tony Clement declared it all a misunderstanding. The program was reinstated. It wasn’t quite as dramatic as the backlash over the proposed changes to the wording of the national anthem, but it was a cliff hanger for the thousands of people who use these sites daily for everything from engaging in independent studies, connecting to government programs, or setting up small businesses to market local products.
In an astonishingly fast about turn, the federal government has rescinded the letters it sent out to community access sites informing them that they would no longer be funded unless they were more than 25 km from a public library.
Industry Minister Tony Clement said it had been a funding envelope error. The sites will to be funded through the Rural Broadband Strategy program "while the Community Access Program is wound down." It's a mixed message, for sure.
On Mar. 9, administrators of community technology/access sites reported receiving a letter from Industry Canada announcing that their funding was about to be cut off. "Our support....will target CAP sites that do not have access to a publicly funded library within a 25-kilometre radius."
The government suggests that it is merely about "access", but knows full well that these sites provide much more than that.
