Common menu bar links

NOTICE

The Aboriginal Canada Portal closed February 12, 2013. The Digital Aboriginals of True North Turtle Island have intervened. Please visit this web page for more information.

III. Connectivity Data

The following information is a synthesis of the various data sources referenced within the above methodology.

a. Internet Access at the Community Level

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet Sites

Aboriginal Community	TOTAL Communities	Internet Access	%	NO Access	%
First Nations	634	589	92.90%	45	7.10%
Inuit	53	47	88.68%	6	11.32%
Métis	50	37	74.00%	13	26.00%
TOTAL	737	673	91.32%	64	8.68%

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet sites

At the community level, 91% of Aboriginal communities are connected to the Internet in some way. This includes access at the Community Administration Office (CAO), Community Access Points (CAP) and SchoolNet sites, and even at the Household level.

It should be noted that not all Community Administration Offices and SchoolNet sites make their connections available to the general public.

i. Toll-Free Internet Access at the Community Level

Based upon the communities that have Internet Access from the table above

Aboriginal Community	Toll-Free	%	Charged	%
First Nations	450 of 583	77.19%	133 of 583	22.81%
Inuit	27 of 47	57.45%	20 of 47	42.55%
Métis	30 of 37	81.08%	7 of 37	18.92%
TOTAL	507 of 667	76.01%	160 of 667	23.99%

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet sites

When we exclude the number of communities that incur long distance charges for Internet services, the numbers change significantly. Also, of the 673 respondents that indicated that their communities have Internet Access, 6 did not specify the method of connection. Therefore, as a result the ACP survey team has reduced the total number of communities with Internet Access from 673 to 667. At the community level, more than 75% of connected Aboriginal communities have toll-free access to the Internet. This includes access at the Community Administration Office (CAO), Community Access Points (CAP) and SchoolNet sites, and even at the Household level.

ii. Method of Internet Access at the Community Level

chart: Method of Internet Access at the Community Level

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet sites
We have defined high-speed internet access to include ADSL, Cable, ISDN, T1, and Wireless.

Approximately 75% of communities use low-speed dial-in modems to connect to the Internet. Of this 75%, approximately 32% of these communities (24% of the total) do so while incurring long-distance charges.

While a community that connects to the Internet via low-speed modem while incurring long-distance charges is technically “connected”, the ability for that connection to be used for research, e-commerce or educational purposes is severely limited. The ACP survey team refers to “connected communities” as those who do not incur long distance telephone charges for its use.

iii. Internet Access at the Community Level by Province/Territory

chart: Internet Access Rates at the Community Level

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet sites

The level of connectivity varies from province to province but averages well over 80% for all provinces in both years, with the greatest annual gain for Internet access at the community level occurring in the Northwest Territories, moving from 64% in 2002 to 100% in 2003.

It should be noted that ALL Aboriginal communities in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island had Internet Access in both years.

iv. High-Speed Internet Access Rates by Province/Territory at the Community Level

chart: High-Speed Internet Access Rates at the Community

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet sites
We have defined high-speed internet access to include ADSL, Cable, ISDN, T1, and Wireless.

Nova Scotia and Yukon clearly lead the country with the highest rate of high-speed internet access at the community level. Nova Scotia also had the greatest annual gain for level of high-speed connectivity at the community level, moving from 15% in 2002 to 46% in 2003. Yukon had the highest rate of high-speed internet access at the community level in 2002 with 25%, and rose to 43% in 2003. This is in large part due to the success of the Connect Yukon project. For more information on Connect Yukon and other provincial initiatives, see Appendix C.

Based upon the 2003 connectivity survey results, the level of high-speed connectivity varies from province to province but averages at approximately 21%, this is up from 10% in 2002.

The Aboriginal communities surveyed in Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island do not have high-speed Internet access at the community level.

v. High-Speed Internet Access Rates by Population Group at the Community Level

High-Speed Internet Access Rate by Population Group	<100	100-499	500-1,999	2000+	TOTAL
2003 High-Speed/Access	15.05%	21.93%	18.75%	41.03%	20.95%
2002 High-Speed/Access	7.79%	9.56%	7.96%	30.77%	10.10%

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet sites
We have defined high-speed internet access to include ADSL, Cable, ISDN, T1, and Wireless.

It was no surprise that larger communities are better connected to high-speed Internet services than smaller ones. As the cost of providing these services decrease and the number of customers who demand high-speed Internet services increase we should see more smaller-sized communities being offered high-speed Internet services.

High-Speed Internet Access rates have on average doubled from 2002 to 2003 for each population group. This shows that there exists an ever increasing demand for this high-speed internet service for all Aboriginal Communities.

vi. Community Internet Access Sites Breakdown

Community Internet Access Sites	2002	%	2003	%
Community Admin Office (CAO) Only	235	34.61%	159	40.56%
CAO+CAP and/or SchoolNet Sites	311	45.80%	201	51.28%
CAP and/or SchoolNet Sites Only	65	9.57%	12	3.06%
No Access	68	10.02%	20	5.10%
TOTAL	679	100.00%	392	100.00%

Based upon 2002 & 2003 Connectivity Survey Responses, CAP and SchoolNet sites

At least 80% of the Aboriginal Communities surveyed have Internet Access at their Community Administration Office (CAO).

vii. Internet Access in Urban Areas

GROUP	Total - Area of Residence	On Reserve	Total Off Reserve =	Rural +	Urban
Aboriginal Population (Single Responses)	100%	30%	70%	20%	50%
Non-Aboriginal Population	100%	0%	100%	19%	81%
TOTAL Population	100%	1%	99%	20%	79%

Statistics Canada - Cat. No. 97F0011XCB01001

From the table above, notice that half of the Aboriginal Population resides in urban areas off reserve. All major urban centres within Canada have access to high-speed Internet services.

chart: High-Speed Internet Availability in Urban Areas with Friendship Centres

chart: High-Speed Internet Availability in Urban Areas with Friendship Centres

Thus, one could conclude the majority of Aboriginal citizens have access to high speed Internet services. Unfortunately, the economic situation facing most urban Aboriginals severely limits their ability to subscribe to Internet services and purchase the required computer equipment. For many, the only means of accessing the Internet is through the network of 116 Native friendships centres. 87% of friendship centres are located within urban areas that have high-speed Internet available to them. 11% of friendship centres are co-located with Industry Canada's Community Access Points (CAP sites).