Organization: Community Futures Network of Alberta
Region: Alberta
Impact: Through the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund, Community Futures in Alberta supported over 1,700 businesses and over 9,500 jobs in Alberta during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Program: Regional Relief and Recovery Fund (RRRF)
Funding: $85 Million to over 1,700 rural businesses in Alberta
Sectors: Business growth, Community economic development
Story Date: 2022-08-16
The COVID-19 pandemic brought on many challenges for communities, especially for the small and medium-sized businesses that consistently drive local growth and innovation.
When pandemic health measures changed how people accessed local goods and services, many small businesses struggled. Some of them could not access early federal business support programs. They had to keep searching for help with their financial pressures.
The Government of Canada, through PrairiesCan, launched the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund (RRRF). This program supported small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that faced challenges during the pandemic. Many Alberta businesses needed financial relief. In order to meet those needs, we partnered with the Community Futures Network of Alberta and 27 local offices to deliver RRRF support in rural areas.
Community Futures is a network of rural, non-profit corporations. They help entrepreneurs start or grow their businesses. They focus on creating jobs in rural communities by providing services such as business loans, guidance and training. Community Futures also offers services tailored to the needs of entrepreneurs with disabilities. PrairiesCan provides ongoing funding to Community Futures offices across the Prairies. During the pandemic, Community Futures was a vital lifeline supporting economic recovery for local businesses and communities.
From May 2020 to June 2021, Community Futures helped more than 1,700 rural Alberta businesses with $85 million in liquidity assistance through the rural stream of the RRRF. Community Futures processed 2,800 RRRF loans to their business network. These loans helped rural firms that urgently needed financial help to keep their businesses open. Thanks in part to Community Futures support, many local businesses that might have failed during the pandemic are still in business today.
