Government of Canada : Investment Helps Boost Tourism and Creates Youth Employment in Northern Ontario

January 19, 2016 - Whitney - Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario - FedNor

The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and Minister responsible for FedNor, today announced the results of a FedNor investment aimed at maximizing the tourism potential of the Algonquin park region. Over the past year, The Friends of Algonquin Park developed outreach programs to educate and inform tourists, transcribed historical audio files, and created an electronic database for archive documents, artifacts and photographs that help capture and promote the history of Algonquin Park.

The investment of $31,500 enabled The Friends of Algonquin Park to hire a youth intern for a one-year period to conduct the work. As a direct result of this investment and following the successful completion of the project, the organization hired the intern on a full-time basis.

Quick Facts

• This investment was provided through FedNor's Northern Ontario Development Program, which support projects that promote sustainable community economic development, enhance business development and growth, and facilitate innovation.
• Since its inception, FedNor has helped provide more than 1525 young post-secondary graduates with their crucial first job, and assisted businesses and organizations, such as Friends of Algonquin Park, in growing the economy by helping them access a qualified and talented workforce.
• The Friends of Algonquin Park is a not-for-profit organization that produces educational programs, workshops, publications and special events to attract tourists from around the world to the Algonquin region. The organization offers its services throughout the year to share the natural and cultural history with Park visitors.

Quotes

'The Government of Canada is proud to invest in initiatives that create jobs for young Canadians and maximize the economic potential of Northern Ontario tourism assets. Algonquin Park is a key economic driver for the region's tourism industry, and this investment is not only helping fuel this important sector of the economy, it resulted in a young graduate getting valuable career experience.'

- The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development

'We are thrilled to partner with the Government of Canada to further position Algonquin Park as a destination of choice for tourists from across the country and around the world. Hiring a qualified youth intern provided a tremendous boost to our organization and we look forward to the positive results this project will continue to deliver for the region.'

- Lee Pauzé, General Manager, The Friends of Algonquin Park

Associated Links

Contacts

Barclay Babcock
Communications Officer
FedNor
705-690-0957 or 1-877-333-6673 poste 303
[e-mail]