The Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, Solicitor-General of Canada, and Member of Parliament for Cardigan, on behalf of the Honourable Brian Tobin, federal Minister of Industry and the Honourable Mike Currie, Minister of Development and Technology and Minister responsible for Technology PEI, today announced that the Canada-PEI program which hires youth aged 15 to 30 will provide employment for 40 youth this year at Community Access Program (CAP) sites across the province.
Participants in the program will assist residents, visitors and local businesses in improving their knowledge and effective use of the Internet. Specific duties include delivering Internet training sessions, researching and developing Web sites, drafting publicity materials, organizing cyber camps for children, and providing technical support to the CAP site.
"Throughout Canada, the CAP Youth Initiative has provided over 5,600 young people with the opportunity to develop valuable skills," said Solicitor-General MacAulay. "It has done the same for the youth of Prince Edward Island. These skills will provide young Islanders with the foundation for success in the knowledge-based economy."
"One of the goals of the program is to give young people some work experience in the IT field and I am really pleased that since its inception more than 190 youth on Prince Edward Island have benefited," said Minister Currie. "The CAP Youth Initiative also provides a vital service to the CAP sites by supporting staff and many hard working volunteers who are so important to their success."
Jason Etter of Charlottetown was hired under the CAP Youth Initiative at the Stratford CAP site in 1999 and is currently employed in the information technology field with CGI Information Systems and Management Consultants Atlantic Region in its Halifax, Nova Scotia offices.
"I enjoyed showing users, from children to adults, a wide range of applications ranging from how to search and download from the Internet, to how to cut and paste documents. Seeing people grasp this technology reaffirmed to me, this was the industry I wanted to work in," said Etter.
Industry Canada's Community Access program is part of the Government of Canada's Connecting Canadians strategy, which is helping keep Canada among world leaders in Internet access and applications.
The program is establishing public Internet access in remote, rural and urban communities, nation-wide. In PEI, more than 60 access centres have been created since the launch of the program in 1995, typically within a community site such as a school, library or community centre.
The CAP Youth Initiative's main objective is to assist communities in developing the full potential of their CAP centres. Across Canada, the CAP Youth Initiative is delivered by Industry Canada and is funded through Human Resources Development Canada's Youth Employment Strategy (YES). Industry Canada is providing $133,000 toward this initiative which is cost-shared by the province. On Prince Edward Island, the program is administered by Technology PEI.
This year's program will provide part-time employment for 40 youth during a 400- hour work term. Youth interested in these positions may submit their résumés online through the e-documents section at www.peicaps.org.
Technology PEI Inc. is a provincial Crown Corporation established to advance the growth and development in Prince Edward Island's technology sector. Technology PEI plays a leadership role in the development, use and adoption of information technology for businesses and communities in Prince Edward Island.