Centre de geomatique du Quebec Receives $983,318 in Funding From Government of Canada for Leading-Edge Equipment

SAGUENAY, QUEBEC--(Marketwire - Feb. 18, 2011) - The Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of State for Canada Economic Development, today announced that the Centre de géomatique du Québec (CGQ) has been granted $983,318 in non-repayable funding to acquire ultra-modern technological tools and thereby offer better services and guidance to its clients. This financial assistance has been awarded through the Temporary Initiative for the Strengthening of Quebec's Forest Economies (TISQFE).

"Canada Economic Development is pleased to lend its support to the Centre géomatique du Québec, whose project promises to stimulate the economy of Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, a region we know has been hard hit by the crisis in the forest sector," explained Minister of State Lebel.

The CGQ's mission is to meet the needs of Quebec enterprises looking to bolster their productivity, improve their products and services and capitalize on the opportunities that geomatics has to offer. The Centre is dedicated to helping small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) become more innovative, and thus more competitive, through the transfer of knowledge and know-how. 

About the TISQFE

Brought into force last June, the Temporary Initiative for the Strengthening of Quebec's Forest Economies was established to help communities affected by the forestry crisis diversify their economies in order to secure their development and create and maintain employment. The measure's aim is also to support the viability and sustainable growth of the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in these communities.

"The TISQFE is working very well. I am delighted that we are well on our way to reaching our goal of investing $50 million in Quebec in the first year of this initiative," noted Minister of State Lebel.

This measure is one of many put in place by the Government of Canada in recent months to counteract the effects of the forest crisis. Others include, for example, the Community Adjustment Fund, with its $1 billion budget over two years to mitigate the impacts of the crisis, the Pulp and Paper Green Transformation Program, toward which $1 billion has been granted to the help enterprises carry out environmentally-friendly projects, and the investment of $230 million in collaboration with the Government of Quebec for silvicultural work and the restoration of bridges and culverts on multi-use forest roads. Workers have also benefited from their fair share of support, with the Government of Canada introducing some of the most generous measures in history to help them through the economic crisis.

For more on the Centre de géomatique du Québec, visit www.cgq.qc.ca

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