A new twist on an old Industry Canada agenda
The Connecting Canadians agenda which has been in force for several years has taken a new turn as Industry Canada is asking a new task force to advise on how best to ensure high-speed access for every Canadian community by 2004. David Johnston, president of the University of Waterloo, will head the new group which has been charged with identifying ways to address the digital divide and the role government should play in overcoming barriers to full-scale broadband rollout. Other members of the task force will be announced later this fall. The group will have to work fast – the feds have given it until March 31, 2001 to report. It’s an aggressive deadline. The Information Highway Advisory Council, also headed by Johnston, took several years to issue two reports leading to the Connecting Canadians agenda in the mid-90’s.

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