RDÉE Île-du-Prince-Édouard

RDÉE Île-du-Prince-Édouard The Réseau de développement économique et d'employabilité (RDÉE) Île-du-Prince-Édouard (Î.-P.-É.) (Economic Development and Employability Network of P.E.I.) supports Acadian and Francophone socioeconomic development by making a range of services available to local organizations in order to stimulate job creation.

Close to 6,000 native Francophones live in Prince Edward Island. With more than 200 Francophone entrepreneurs who create jobs, their contribution to the economy is an important one.

Sponsored by the Société de développement de la Baie acadienne (SDBA), RDÉE P.E.I. is a partner of the national RDÉE Canada network, a creation of ten federal departments and the Francophone communities outside Québec. Thanks to this affiliation, RDÉE P.E.I. has access to Francophone economic development resources from throughout the country.

RDÉE P.E.I. strives to create a favourable climate for the socioeconomic development of Acadians and Francophones by making available human, financial and material resources, sharing best practices and offering technological watch.

RDÉE P.E.I. is able to carry out its mission thanks to strategic partnerships with various community organizations and with members of its Advisory Council, which represents the business community of Prince Edward Island. The Council has 16 members (ten organizations and six entrepreneurs), and is supported by a mandate and a memorandum of understanding that have been validated by the board of directors of the SDBA, its representative organization.

It works primarily in the sectors of rural development, the knowledge-based economy, integration of youth in economic development and tourism.

Rural Development

RDÉE P.E.I. works with community groups to create more and better employment opportunities. It also works at creating a favourable environment for socioeconomic development and employability. Some of its initiatives in this sector include:

creation of the Chambre de commerce acadienne et francophone de l’Île-du-Prince-Édouard;
support of the Plan Vision involving local strategic planning;
development of the Evangeline Farmers’ Market;
re-establishment of the Conseil de développement coopératif.

Knowledge-Based Economy

RDÉE P.E.I. strives to provide electronic tools to socioeconomic entrepreneurs and stakeholders and to promote opportunities for learning and discussion in order to strengthen their capacities and skills. Some of its initiatives in this sector include:

support and implementation of a local strategy to integrate the knowledge-based economy into economic development;
establishment of a partnership with various development corporations in the province (the Route 2 Network) to develop and implement initiatives promoting economic development through a new wireless broadband network that was jointly installed;
development and implementation of a teleworking strategy;
development of LAVAG, an online tool used to evaluate and projects and share information and the development and implementation of projects.

Youth in Economic Development

RDÉE P.E.I. continues to work with Jeunesse acadienne and its partners to develop an entrepreneurial culture that fosters the involvement of youth in the socioeconomic development of their community, all the while trying to counter their migration from the province. Some of its initiatives in this sector include:

development of the PERCÉ project;
coordination of the Junior Achievement program to P.E.I. francophone youth;
coordination of the “Young Millionaires” program for P.E.I. francophone youth;
participation in the development of a new youth crafts co-op;
participation in the development of an annual youth forum and of a youth entrepreneurship camp;
maintenance of a youth profile data bank designed to better position young people in the job market.

Tourism

RDÉE P.E.I. works with several partners to develop new tourism products and to improve and promote existing products, putting emphasis on the cultural heritage of communities. Some of its initiatives in this sector include:

the 400th anniversary celebrations of Acadia;
the Doucet House project in South Rustico;
“The Green” project in Tignish;
support of various festivals;
support in the development of a cultural tourism strategy;
support of the Association touristique Évangéline..

“In a conversation with the RDÉE development officer, we realized that there was no market in P.E.I. The RDÉE helped us obtain funding from the provincial government and gave our publicity a real boost,” said Cédric Gallant, person responsible for the Evangeline Farmers’ Market.

Richard Harvey, president of the Chambre de commerce acadienne et francophone de l’Île-du-Prince-Édouard, says “The RDÉE played a key role in the implementation of the Chamber. Its staff helped us write funding requests, develop our Web site and get in touch with members.”

According to Angèle Arsenault, president of the Conseil de développement coopératif, “If it hadn’t been for the RDÉE, we could not have gone on. One of its officers invited several people to participate and sit on our committee. She acted as a link with other organizations and helped us obtain funding. Her help was invaluable.”

RDÉE P.E.I.
48 Mill Rd., P.O. Box 67
Wellington, PE C0B 2E0
Tel.: (902) 854-3439
Fax: (902) 854-3099
info@rdeeipe.com
http://www.rdeeipe.com