Rural Economic Development Minister visits Prince George

PRINCE GEORGE- The newly appointed Minister of Economic Development Bernadette Jordan was in town today to hear from residents of Prince George and the surrounding area. She is on a nationwide tour to some of Canada’s smaller communities to hear their concerns.

She was in Prince George today as part of a national tour to hear what communities have to say and learn about some of the realities smaller communities deal with. Items like housing and health support were some of the bigger talking points the minister heard about from Prince George and surrounding districts.

One of the biggest concerns is the lack of connectivity for some communities in terms of cellular and wireless connections. Some businesses in these areas do not have Interac and that is just due to there being no cell towers or fibre optic cables.

The reasoning behind smaller communities not having better connections is that there simply is not enough people in the areas for companies to go in and build towers and put cables in to better connect the people. Northern Development initiative trust only sees a potential solution if the government steps in. There are programs and projects in place that are working on connecting rural areas slowly but they feel the only true way to connect not only northern BC but all of Canada is for the government to fund over the long term.