Economic Development Initiative

The Economic Development Initiative (EDI) will support southern Ontario's Francophone communities (the official language minority community in Ontario) to enhance their economic base and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), support Youth Internships, respond to community needs and foster economic growth sectors such as Francophone tourism, cultural, knowledge-based and manufacturing industries.

EDI supports the Roadmap for Canada's Linguistic Duality action plan, which aims to strengthen linguistic duality, reinforce Canada's national identity and provide economic benefits for all Canadians.

Applications are being accepted on an ongoing basis. Please refer to the links in the right-hand menu for detailed eligibility and application requirements.

Who is eligible?

Eligible recipients normally include Francophone or bilingual organizations that are located in southern Ontario and provide programs or services in French to the Francophone community such as:

• community economic development corporations;
• not-for-profit organizations and sector associations;
• post-secondary institutions that offer full-time programs of study in French;
• municipalities that serve the Francophone community;

What activities are eligible?

Eligible activities include:

• strategic and community planning;
• community mobilization and networking;
• feasibility studies;
• business planning;
• marketing studies;
• export market research;
• developing economic and business skills;
• integrating Francophone immigrants into the business and economic development community;
• enhancing access to economic and business information and services;
• promoting Francophone youth internships and entrepreneurship initiatives;
• developing and expanding export markets; and
• supporting innovation, applied research and development and commercialization.

Should you have questions or inquiries, please contact us.

Other initiatives open for application:

Prosperity Initiative | Investing in Business Innovation | Graduate Enterprise Internship | Scientists and Engineers in Business | Technology Development Program | Youth STEM