Canada is going to need much better internet

Sylvain Charlebois writes it holds the key to eliminating rural-urban divide.

They say food connects us all. Very true, but so does the internet these days.

Along with provinces, Ottawa is on path to give 98 per cent of the Canadian population access to high-speed internet by 2026. This is a much more ambitious target than the previous goal of 95 per cent by 2030.

However, there's some uncertainty that today's highspeed internet will be useful by 2026. In IT, six years is a lifetime and the $1.75 billion announced to support the policy is not new money. But still such an motivated aim set by government is certainly something we should celebrate. With such a policy, the government now truly supports the concept of the internet being a basic service, not just a luxury.

In 2016, the CRTC estimated that barely 40 per cent of rural Canada had access to high-speed internet. It was also noted that the marketplace could not solve this issue alone.

The economics of connecting people are very weak in remote areas. The low density in rural communities means urban centres may have hundreds of customers per kilometre, while a rural area may have just one or two.

With the pandemic, many are fleeing cities only to realize how poorly serviced rural regions are with internet access. In recent months, we have all experienced seeing a colleague or someone losing a signal due to poor connectivity.

Poor internet quality has been an issue for rural communities for a very long time. Farmers knew it and their businesses were affected by it. The pandemic simply made a mostly rural-based problem an urban one, which suits Ottawa well these days.

Growing rural economies have never been more critical.

Efficient access to information and data can only empower many companies trying to make better decisions. Farmers will certainly benefit from this new more aggressive path.

The use of technologies, precision agriculture and controlled-environment agriculture can better be supported by enhanced access to data. After all, farmers need market information, prices and access to more suppliers to run efficient and productive farms.

Better, more cost-effective farming will mean better food security for us all. It is as simple as that.

Many farmers cannot drive to a store within 10 minutes.

A single piece of broken equipment can cost them their entire day, perhaps more. Data is like oxygen for most companies and farming operations in rural economies is no different.

Occupying our vast land and allowing rural and Indigenous communities to strive can only be achieved by supporting them with better access to information.

Data sharing goes both ways. Easy access to data is also important for city dwellers wanting to connect with outlying regions. The overwhelming divide between rural communities and cities is affecting perceptions and most importantly, policy.

Not understanding or prioritizing agri-food policies has been one of our greatest failures as a country. Better connectivity is absolutely the most powerful way to mitigate the effects of the rural-urban divide we have experienced in recent decades. For agri-food, the pandemic may have been the policy reset we all needed.

For all of us though, these new goals provide more options.

Such a policy will build a stronger case for telecommuting or getting people to work from home. According to some estimates, over 23 per cent of employers for whom working from home is a possibility are planning to let their staff continue this practice even after the pandemic is over.

In other words, your personal address may not matter as much anymore if the technology enables anyone to work from anywhere. Given urban sprawls and increasing real estate costs in cities, this may not be such a bad thing. Living in Mossey River, Manitoba while working for an organization in Toronto could be a possibility in a few years from now.

Despite our considerable land and somewhat complicated topography, Canada should continue to aspire to remain a leader in telecommunications. After all, the phone was invented right here in our country and the first long-distance telephone call in the world was made in 1876 between Brantford and Paris, Ont.

The internet is just the next frontier and broadband service for all is only the latest challenge we should be able to tackle.

Unfortunately, we still do not know if the service will be affordable for users. And again, it is unclear how useful “high-speed internet” will be by 2026.

With strong oversight, the CRTC should make its expectations clear as we have spent billions making sure everyone has access to broadband internet.