Dave Sullivan
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Aug 29/01) - Before Canada's industry minister left town Saturday, he dropped off $4.6 million in grants to some big corporations.

Northland Utilities, NorthwesTel, the Genesis Group, Ferguson Simek Clark and Outcrop Communications will use the windfall for Web sites with online catalogues and e-commerce.

The minister, Brian Tobin, was joined by territorial politicians in praising the Smart Communities program, under which $60 million is being given away in hand-picked communities across Canada.

The grants are designed to stimulate activity, in the high-tech sector, said Yellowknife's Smart communities chair, David Wind.

The companies, along with some non-profit groups and government-funded agencies, got the grants to help make Yellowknife one of a dozen demonstration cities across Canada, Wind said.

Yellowknife Health and Social Services, in addition to the Chamber of Commerce, Prince of Wales museum and visitors centre will also benefit from the program.

Both school boards will build fibre-optic links between their schools, and the city plans to built a bill-payment system that responds to voice commands.

Even though the North already has fast, satellite-driven Internet access, Wind says the government money will make it even better.

In total $12 million will be spent on Internet pursuits in Yellowknife, because the companies involved are matching government funds with their own, Wind said. In all, 14 projects will receive federal help over the next 30 months.

"We have to make Canada the most connected nation on Earth," Tobin told over 100 guests at an official launch.

The demise of high tech on world markets is only "a temporary adjustment."