[Advisors] items on interest in the 2017 budget

[Marita Moll]

Hello all. Here are a few excerpts from the recent budget that should be 
of interest to community networks and digital literacy training 
providers. The details are not out yet, but these are funding sources 
worth watching. The full budget can be accessed here: 
http://www.budget.gc.ca/2017/docs/plan/chap-01-en.html


        Teaching Kids to Code

Providing educational opportunities for digital skills development to 
Canadian girls and boys—from kindergarten to grade 12—will give them the 
head start they need to find and keep good, well-paying, in-demand jobs. 
To help provide coding and digital skills education to more young 
Canadians, the Government intends to launch a competitive process 
through which digital skills training organizations can apply for 
funding. Budget 2017 proposes to provide $50 million over two years, 
starting in 2017–18, to support these teaching initiatives.


        Expanding Digital Learning Opportunities

Digital skills widen Canadians’ access to a world of possibilities. 
Budget 2017 proposes $29.5 million over the next five years for a new 
Digital Literacy Exchange program. The program will support non-profit 
organizations to implement initiatives that teach basic digital skills, 
including how to use the Internet safely and effectively, at 
pre-existing facilities such as public libraries, refugee housing 
complexes and seniors’ homes. The program will focus on vulnerable 
groups such as low-income individuals and families, and seniors.


        Youth Service

As announced in Budget 2016, the Youth Service Initiative will help 
young Canadians gain valuable work experience while providing support 
for communities across Canada. The Government will launch the Initiative 
in the fall of 2017, including a call for proposals to give youth the 
opportunity to serve.


        Expanding the Youth Employment Strategy

Canadian youth have the talent and drive to succeed in the labour 
market. To help them make the transition from school to work and get a 
strong start in their careers, the Government invests in the Youth 
Employment Strategy, a government-wide initiative to help support 
Canada’s newest workers.

Last year, the Government announced new investments in the Youth 
Employment Strategy and the Canada Summer Jobs program, which help to 
create short-term job opportunities for students between the ages of 15 
and 30.

These investments are supporting the creation of:

  * Over 5,000 opportunities for young Canadians under the Skills Link
    stream, which helps vulnerable youth overcome barriers to employment.
  * Nearly 2,500 new green jobs that help young Canadians learn about
    their natural environment and contribute to economic growth in the
    environmental sectors.
  * Additional job opportunities for young Canadians to work in the
    heritage sector through the Young Canada Works program.

To further expand employment opportunities for young Canadians, Budget 
2017 proposes to provide an additional $395.5 million over three years, 
starting in 2017–18, for the Youth Employment Strategy. Combined with 
Budget 2016 measures, these investments will help more than 33,000 
vulnerable youth develop the skills they need to find work or go back to 
school; create 15,000 new green jobs for young Canadians; and provide 
over 1,600 new employment opportunities for youth in the heritage sector.

Marita


-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://victoria.tc.ca/pipermail/advisors/attachments/20170327/e22c9b02/attachment.html>