7 Conquering the Next Frontier in Bridging the Digital Divide Indigenous and northern communities remain woefully behind the rest of Canada in terms of the availability of internet at speeds needed to take full advantage of essential services such as health care and education. [...] A lack of co-ordination within the federal government and between the federal government and the provinces and territories also impacts the length of time it takes to identify and fund projects. [...] It is particularly noteworthy (and praiseworthy) that the CRTC has explicitly included reconciliation as a regulatory objective in the proceeding, stating that “Reconciliation is one of the Government of Canada’s and the CRTC’s commitments to renewing the relationship with Indigenous Peoples, based on the recognition of rights, respect, co-operation and partnership” (p. [...] Finally, as recommended by the Office of the Auditor General (2023), the federal government should collect and analyze data, including consideration of household income, to measure progress against the affordability objective of its connectivity strategy — in addition to its goal of expanding adequate internet infrastructure to 98 per cent of households by 2026 and to 100 per cent by 2030. [...] Improving high-speed access in Indigenous and northern communities and providing an improved financial benefit to low-income households should be the key priorities in the government’s efforts to conquer the next frontier of the digital divide.
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Table of Contents
- ABOUT THIS PAPER 2
- Imagining a Better Digital Future for Canada 2
- Ian Scott 2
- Conquering the Next Frontier in Bridging the Digital Divide 2
- HIGHLIGHTS 5
- Improve co-ordination within and across governments 5
- Prioritize northern and Indigenous communities 5
- Expand discounted internet plans 5
- FAITS SAILLANTS 7
- Améliorer la coordination au sein des gouvernements et entre eux 7
- Donner la priorité aux communautés autochtones et du Nord 7
- Élargir les forfaits Internet à prix réduit 8
- INTRODUCTION 9
- Digital Charter Implementation Act 9
- AVAILABILITY OF BROADBAND INTERNET 10
- Northern and Indigenous communities 12
- Low-income households 15
- WHAT CAN BE DONE TO BRIDGE THE GAP 17
- Improve co-ordination within and across governments 17
- Telecommunications Act 18
- Prioritize northern and Indigenous communities 18
- Expand discounted internet plans 21
- Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 21
- CONCLUSION 23
- REFERENCES 24
