Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund

CHALLENGES TO DEVELOPMENT IN THE NORTH Distance from markets Access to business support Infrastructure Unemployment levels Access to training opportunities Lack of financial services

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES TO ECONOMIC AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT THROUGH ONLINE APPLICATIONS CONNECTIVITY

APPLICATIONS Economic Development Officer Networking/Tools –Bulletin Board/Chat Area –Interactive Planners/Sample Business Plans –Community Success Stories/Studies Video Conferencing –Business Counseling/Loan monitoring –Training –Presentation of Business Ideas –Best Practices

APPLICATIONS (Cont’d) Virtual Network Computing (VNC) On-line training On-line Databases –Aboriginal Businesses/Suppliers –Consultants IP Phone Systems to save long distance costs within a network Statistic Gathering/Maintenance

APPLICATIONS (Cont’d) Business Support –VNC Bookkeeping support –Retail Inventory: Ordering, Point of Sale Aboriginal Junior Achievement –Economics of Staying School –Youth Business Plan Contest Virtual Chamber of Commerce Aboriginal Buying Circle Credit Union

REQUIRED PARTNERS Governments Business Aboriginal Organizations FN Communities

Economic Development Officer’s Network

Economic Development Officer Network Will require: Provision of minimum standard of hardware to all EDOs Provision of standard/universal software Training for EDOs Developing a central site for EDO’s with access to features mentioned previously Partners

GOALS/OBJECTIVES for EDO NETWORK Information Sharing Among EDO’s Accessibility to on-line applications and tools Compatible software among EDO’s Increased familiarity with advanced technology and future applications

What has traditionally been seen as disruptive, must now be seen as the chief source of opportunity Tom Peters

CURRENT OPPORTUNITY BUY IN TO THE K-NET NETWORK ACCESS CURRENT GOVERNMENT FUNDING PROGRAMS ACQUIRE THE REQUIRED LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE

RETURN ON INVESTMENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND BUSINESS SUPPORT APPLICATIONS WORK FOR YOUR COMMUNITY