More funding to narrow the digital divide in Alberta

The digital divide caused by the lack of access to high-speed broadband internet for approximately 489,000 Albertans narrowed a bit more today (Wednesday, March 9).

More money has been promised to go towards the connectivity issue so that Alberta residents in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities across the province will have access to high-speed broadband internet. 

The Honourable Gudie Hutchings, Minister of Rural Economic Development was in Alberta for the announcement and says, “We need to close this connection gap and ensure that every nook and cranny of Alberta have access to reliable high-speed Internet. That’s why today’s announcement to increase funding to $780 million to connect all remaining underserved households in the province is a historic milestone for Alberta. The Government of Canada will continue to make investments like these to help connect every Canadian and achieve our national target of connecting 98% of Canadians by 2026 and 100% by 2030.”

A dollar-for-dollar commitment has produced a total of $780 million from the federal and provincial governments that will be put toward Alberta's broadband strategy. This total includes the combined $300 million announced in December of 2021. It has been projected that the divide is a $1 billion problem and the province has secured 75 per cent of the funding to equip all households and communities with internet with federal target speeds of 50 megabits per second (Mbps) for downloads and 10 Mbps for uploads.

While the federal government has set an end date of 2030, Alberta claims it will achieve connectivity by 2026-27. 

Service Minister Nate Glubish says he has listened to many Albertans and their stories about the need for high-speed internet and says in the end the message was the same, “Every story was different, but they all led to the same conclusion. Alberta needed reliable high-speed internet connectivity in every corner of the province.”

The pandemic has driven home the fact that highspeed connectivity is no longer a luxury but a necessity and Glubish says, “I often say that technology is not just an industry, it is the future of every industry and connectivity is the foundation of technology. So with today’s announcement, our governments are making the commitment to support the future of every industry in Alberta and we are committed to getting the job done.”