Communiy Access Centres

    There is a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on Community Access that was reached between the Minister of Industry and each of the Atlantic provinces, including Newfoundland and Labrador. The signing provincial ministries include Intergovernmental Affairs and the Minister of Education. The agreement was put in place to help assist rural and urban communities establish public sites so that:

• people in the province could have convenient and affordable access to the Internet and the information highway;
• individuals could obtain knowledge skills to efficiently use information and communication technologies;
• provincial residents and organizations use the information highway to help achieve their individual, collective, social and economic goals, including exchanging information, transacting business, and accessing government programs and services.¹⁷

    Established in September, 1998 the agreement terminated March 31, 2001. Public access issues and activities are coordinated through the Department of Education benefits from its distance education program that is delivered by a provincial organization called STEM NET.¹⁸ Prior to the education department's management of CAP, Industry Canada implemented approximately half of the sites.