Monday, December 01, 2008
Investing in infrastructure
Will last week's economic statement lead to more investment in broadband infrastructure?During the election campaign, recall that the Conservatives had pledged
to support rural and remote communities by investing in new infrastructure throughout rural and northern Canada.Last Thursday's statement said
Canadians need to continue building a modern and reliable infrastructure. Investing in a 21st century infrastructure will create a competitive advantage that pulls business and jobs into a vibrant national economy and brings our skills and goods onto the world stage efficiently. It will also stimulate the economy and put people to work.What is 21st century infrastructure?
To those of us who read this page, it means communications and broadband. But it really applies to anything being built these days. We know that it will include a new Windsor-Detroit border crossing. A real border for cars and trucks and people, not just fibre connectivity to the US.
There is a lot of telecom infrastructure being built next year by wireless players - the new entrants and the Bell/TELUS HSPA network.
To what extent will government partnerships stimulate additional broadband infrastructure in more remote areas?
Technorati Tags:
broadband, rural
Posted by Mark Goldberg @ 12/01/2008 06:49:00 AM 
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Mark - In a column in today's Globe and Mail entitled "With the Right Skills, a Community Can Lead its Own Recovery", Judith Maxwell, former head of the Econmic Council of Canada, states the following:
"Deep anxiety about access to health care, education and other services is shared by residents of small communities in every province from coast to coast. And for good reason. As the communities lose population, a vicious circle unfolds. It becomes more costly for governments and businesses to deliver services locally, leading them to consolidate schools, hospitals and offices in larger centres. This means long commutes to see a doctor, to go to school, to do the shopping and banking. Provincial politicians are tearing their hair out trying to come up with humane but efficient service delivery models."
For you and I and most of those who read your blog, part of the answer for the politicians who are tearign their hair out is obvious: invest in telecom (broadband infrastructure) and information technology - the old ICT - in order to ENABLE the "efficient delivery of service models" that are being sought.
The other result of the current situation in small, predominantly rural and remote communities, is that young peole pick up and leave thereby condemning the community to a long slow death. As Maxwell's column points out, they leave because “without a job that offers a living wage, it is not possible to stay” and “if services are not provided relatively close to where they live, they will leave.”
The 21st century infrastructure you and I think about and contemplate is definitely part of the answer for both the 'how' and 'what' of solving the need for economic renewal in many, if not most, of the country's small communities. For some reason, our politicians don't or can't see it, perhaps out of ignorance. But this is only part of the problem because, on the other hand, the telcos and IT companies and other stakeholders in the ICT sector don't seem to be doing very much to either educate and convince the politicians or promote and lead potential solutions.
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"Deep anxiety about access to health care, education and other services is shared by residents of small communities in every province from coast to coast. And for good reason. As the communities lose population, a vicious circle unfolds. It becomes more costly for governments and businesses to deliver services locally, leading them to consolidate schools, hospitals and offices in larger centres. This means long commutes to see a doctor, to go to school, to do the shopping and banking. Provincial politicians are tearing their hair out trying to come up with humane but efficient service delivery models."
For you and I and most of those who read your blog, part of the answer for the politicians who are tearign their hair out is obvious: invest in telecom (broadband infrastructure) and information technology - the old ICT - in order to ENABLE the "efficient delivery of service models" that are being sought.
The other result of the current situation in small, predominantly rural and remote communities, is that young peole pick up and leave thereby condemning the community to a long slow death. As Maxwell's column points out, they leave because “without a job that offers a living wage, it is not possible to stay” and “if services are not provided relatively close to where they live, they will leave.”
The 21st century infrastructure you and I think about and contemplate is definitely part of the answer for both the 'how' and 'what' of solving the need for economic renewal in many, if not most, of the country's small communities. For some reason, our politicians don't or can't see it, perhaps out of ignorance. But this is only part of the problem because, on the other hand, the telcos and IT companies and other stakeholders in the ICT sector don't seem to be doing very much to either educate and convince the politicians or promote and lead potential solutions.
Posted by 
: 1:13 PM, December 01, 2008
: 1:13 PM, December 01, 2008 << Home
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