On track to meeting its goal to see every British Columbian with access to high-speed Internet, the Ministry of Technology, Innovation and Citizens’ Services is providing $2.5 million in grants to Internet service providers to expand and enhance high-speed Internet service for residents and businesses in rural and remote areas of the province.

More than 7,000 British Columbians will be trained by this fall through a wide range of skilled-trades and employment training projects throughout the province, thanks to $45.4 million from the provincial and federal governments in 2016/17.

Skilled trades students in B.C.’s rural regions will benefit from the majority of funding from a three-year, $15-million investment by the provincial government with the purchase of new trades training equipment to support youth trades programs.

Residents and businesses on Gambier Island, Keats Island, Port Mellon and surrounding areas will be better able to access faster Internet speeds, thanks to the B.C. government's $560,000 investment in a new connectivity project that will soon get underway by Base Technology Ltd.

Government is providing school districts with a total of $95 million to help them extend the life of their facilities, put new supplies in classrooms and buy new school buses. 

The B.C. government is following through on its commitment to support economic diversification in rural British Columbia by distributing over $750,000 in new project-development grants to help small communities strengthen local economies.

Three new agreements involving eight local governments have been reached in the Kootenays, allowing small businesses to operate in multiple jurisdictions with a single business licence – cutting red tape while freeing up time and money.

The Province has provided $7.125 million to create new hospice beds in communities around British Columbia, make improvements to current spaces, and support best practices in the palliative approach to care as well as advance care planning, working through the BC Centre for Palliative Care.