A program designed to get small and medium-sized Northern Ontario companies exporting will run for another three years, thanks to $1.6 million in FedNor funding.
Launched in 2012, the Northern Ontario Exports Program (NOEP) is a collaboration between Ontario's North Economic Development Corporation (ONEDC) and the economic development corporations in North Bay, Timmins, Thunder Bay, Sudbury, and Sault Ste. Marie.
The program provides training, marketing and advertising help, assisting companies across Northern Ontario to become more competitive, grow and reach new markets.
According to a March 6 FedNor news release, in the last three years, NOEP has helped to create or maintain more than 435 jobs, helping more than 75 companies located across the North to modernize or expand.
Those activities are estimated to have generated short-term sales worth $26 million.
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“We are grateful for this investment from the Government of Canada through FedNor in support of the Northern Ontario Exports Program,” Sudbury Mayor Brian Bigger said in the release.
“The success and ongoing popularity of the program highlights the effectiveness and relevance of collaborative initiatives developed and delivered by ONEDC and its member communities.”
In early February, the Northern Ontario Exports Program was recognized for its work by the Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO), during its annual conference in Toronto.
The federal government said a portion of the FedNor funding announced on March 6 would also help ONEDC to establish a Northern Ontario pavilion at the 2020 MINEXPO, which will be held in September in Las Vegas.
