Northern British Columbia has several dedicated supports to lean on through the Northern Development Initiative Trust.
Regional Business Liaison Program
The Regional Business Liaison Program provides a financial incentive to encourage Community Futures Development Corporations, Chambers of Commerce, local governments, community economic development entities, or regional destination marketing organizations to hire locally based talent to provide business support services for the region.
The funding is a one-time offering to provide additional community-based resources to support small and medium enterprises in accessing support programs made available in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible parties can receive 100% of eligible expenses to a maximum of $75,000 in grant funding.
Eligible Applicants
- Community Futures Development Corporations
- Chambers of Commerce
- Local governments (or community economic development entities
- Regional destination marketing organizations
Eligible Costs
- Staff or contract wages for a regional business liaison position
- 100% of wages are eligible if the position is 100% dedicated to business liaison activities
- If the position is combined with other duties, business liaison activities must be at least 50% of the workload. Only the portion of the wages related to business liaison activities are eligible for reimbursement
- Mandatory employment related costs: CPP, EI, vacation pay (if days not provided)
- Travel expenses related to business liaison activities
Small Business Recovery (SBR) Consulting Rebate Program
This program is designed to help businesses reduce the barrier to accessing professional expertise and recover the costs of third-party consulting projects. These types of projects must focus on ways to sustain businesses during the current economic downturn.
The SBR Consulting Rebate will reimburse small and medium sized businesses (operators) for contracted consulting services. Businesses that are impacted by the economic downturn in Northern Development’s service region are eligible to apply. A rebate of up to 85%, to a yearly maximum of $25,000, can be recovered for the cost of hiring a consultant to assist with business efforts.
