Community Opportunity Readiness Program (CORP) - Program Guidelines
Effective: April 1, 2014
On this page
- Eligibility criteria
- Application requirements
- Project assessment and approval
- Funding levels
- Community Opportunities Readiness Program summary table
- Reporting requirements
- Contacts
The Community Opportunity Readiness Program (CORP) is intended to fill the gap in funding for projects in First Nation and Inuit communities to pursue economic opportunities. The program provides a portion of the total project budget and applicants are required to demonstrate additional sources of funding such as from the private sector, other programs, and their own funding.
Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) assesses proposals based on their ability to leverage the most from other funding sources and to have the greatest impact on their community.
The expected results of the program are to assist First Nations and Inuit communities to implement economic and business development opportunities, while leveraging private sector funding and opportunities.
Eligibility criteria
Eligible recipients
Eligible recipients are First Nation and Inuit communities and their governments, including tribal councils, located in the provinces.
Eligible projects
Eligible initiatives under CORP include:
- Economic opportunities
- An economic opportunity is defined as an opportunity that has the potential of generating continuous community economic benefits (employment, training, creation or expansion or contracts to local businesses, local government revenues, community infrastructure).
- Business planning, advisory services and training, commercial development, and market development for a single community-owned business
- Equity gap financing for creating, acquiring, or expanding a community-owned business
- Equity gap funding provides support to finance a business after all other funding sources have contributed their maximum, including the applicant's own funding. It completes a financing package where no other financing can be obtained and enables the community to obtain conventional debt financing for a business start-up, expansion, or acquisition.
- Community Economic Infrastructure development (not related to a specific eligible business)
- Community Economic Infrastructure refers to a set of fixed structures that will lead to the creation of two or more businesses. The projects are assessed with the following characteristics: a considerable development period, long term use, and support for the activation of the community's economic assets (land, natural resources, human resources, and capital) and the production of goods and services.
Eligible and Ineligible expenditures
Eligible expenditures in relation to eligible projects include:
- project-specific salaries, wages, and benefits;
- overhead, including but not limited to rent, utilities, supplies, minor repairs and maintenance, accounting and audit services and insurance
- communications, including development of content, translation, dissemination, advertising, and signage
- professional, consulting, advisory, and other services, including fees, allowances, and report production
- land surveys and appraisals
- feasibility studies, marketing, advertising, and promotion
- costs related to economic infrastructure including planning and design
- capital costs relating to the establishment, acquisition, expansion, or modernization of a First Nation and Inuit business
Ineligible expenditures include:
- payments for services that would normally be provided without charge (such as honoraria for a community service)
- the operation, repair, and maintenance of economic or municipal infrastructure
- economic infrastructure which has a reasonable expectation of capturing capital and operating costs through user fees and other means and can function as a commercial enterprise
- costs for services provided by a federal or provincial government
- community infrastructure development unrelated to the development or expansion of commercial enterprise, such as public office buildings, recreation and friendship centers, gaming houses or public halls
- replacement of assets
- creating or improving telecommunications infrastructure
- passive investments in real estate or any other activity where the applicant is not fully involved
Application requirements
Application requirements include:
- Applicant's information
- Description of the proposed project and activities to be undertaken
- Cost forecast of the project, including:
- details of financing from all sources
- uses of funds
- identification and justification of costs
- identification of other sources of funding, including applicant equity, commercial financing, and other sources of government funding
- Anticipated economic benefits of the project, including:
- expected outcomes
- proposed performance measures to be used at the end of the project to assess community economic benefits
Applicants may submit a brief Statement of Intent prior to submitting a full application. After reviewing the Statement of Intent, ISC will indicate whether the project meets program criteria, and will advise the applicant on the development of the full application.
Project assessment and approval
Project assessment criteria
Project assessments will be based on the following criteria:
- the project or activity has the potential for leveraging private sector funding and generating net economic benefits to First Nation and Inuit communities
- there is demonstrated management capacity and business expertise of the applicant for the project
- the resources of the applicant and other funding sources are identified, and the applicant has demonstrated that CORP funding is necessary for the project or activity to proceed
- the probable cost of each job likely to be created or maintained for a First Nation and Inuit community person by the proposed project is identified
- the probable impact of the proposed project on other commercial operations and the environment is identified
- the long-term viability of the proposed business opportunity is described
- the relationship of the project to federal and regional economic strategies and priorities is identified; and
- any other criteria that the Minister may deem appropriate are applied.
Project approval criteria
Project approvals include the following criteria:
- the applicant must be eligible, and the application must meet all requirements, including for eligible expenses
- the applicant must contribute a minimum 10% cash contribution for all types of projects
- the proposed project must generate community economic benefits that exceed ISC contributions by a minimum ratio of 5:1
- community economic benefits should include one or more of the following:
- community employment (full-time, part-time, and seasonal)
- training of community members
- contracts and purchases from community and member businesses
- community business start-ups and expansions
- community government revenues
- any conflicts between the proposed project and a specific or comprehensive claim have been adequately addressed
- projects which would bring the CORP into disrepute should not be approved
- eligible recipients are in compliance with ISC's Management Control Framework regarding audits, reporting, and other matters
- the application must be complete and in sufficient detail proportional with the level of funding being sought
Funding levels
CORP's funding will be limited to the gap in funding that has been demonstrated by the eligible applicant. Only initiatives that would not otherwise proceed in the proposed location, scope, or time will be considered for funding, to avoid duplication of resources from other sources.
Funding limits are per project, not per recipient. The stacking limit maximum level of funding to a recipient from all sources (including federal, provincial, territorial, or municipal) for any one activity, initiative, or project is 100% of eligible costs.
Community Opportunities Readiness Program summary table
| Eligible projects | Maximum funding ($) | Maximum funding (%) | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economic opportunities | $3,000,000 | 80% |
|
| Business planning and advisory services | $1,000,000 | 80% |
|
| Equity gap for creating, acquiring, or expanding a community-owned business | $250,000 - $1,000,000 | 30% (acquisitions expansions) 40% (start-ups) |
|
| Community Economic Infrastructure to facilitate creation of two or more businesses | $3,000,000 | 66.67% |
|
Reporting requirements
Recipients will be requested to submit schedules, plans, and reports in sufficient detail to enable ISC to:
- assess the progress of the project
- carry out the post-completion monitoring according to funding arrangement conditions, or the program's performance measurement strategy
- evaluate the effectiveness of the contributions
- assess the long-term viability of a business opportunity
A monitoring plan will be developed for each project to provide periodic information regarding the progress of the initiative against the milestones proposed in the application. It will also identify unanticipated risks or impediments to achieving intended results. The proposed level of monitoring will correspond to the level of risk associated with the project.
Progress and financial reports will be required on an annual basis by recipients, at a minimum. Recipients will also be required to submit a final report at the conclusion of a project, in accordance with the terms of the funding arrangements.
Contacts
Atlantic
PO Box 160 40 Havelock St
Amherst, Nova Scotia B4H 3Z3
Telephone: 1-800-567-9604
Email: developpementeconomique-at-at-economicdevelopment@sac-isc.gc.ca
Québec
320 St-Joseph St East, Room 400
Place Jacques Cartier Complex
Quebec Quebec G1K 9J2
Telephone: 1-800-263-5592 option 6
Email: qctdeledqc@sac-isc.gc.ca
Ontario
655 Bay Street, Suite 700
Toronto Ontario M5G 2K4
Telephone: (416) 973-5282
Email: ledontario@sac-isc.gc.ca
Manitoba
365 Hargrave Street, Suite 200
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 3A3
Email: mbppdeconomicdevelopment@sac-isc.gc.ca
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan Regional Office
Hill Tower 3, 2010-12th Avenue Regina, Saskatchewan S4P 2B8
Telephone: (306) 502-3964
Email: skecdev@sac-isc.gc.ca
Alberta
730 Canada Place
9700 Jasper Avenue
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4G2
Telephone: (780) 495-2787
Email: abecdev@sac-isc.gc.ca
British Columbia
1138 Melville St, Suite 600
Vancouver, British Columbia V6E 4S3
Telephone: (604) 775-5100 or Toll-free 1-800-665-9320
Email: bcecdev@sac-isc.gc.ca
Northern British Columbia
300 Main Street, Room 415C
Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 2B5
Telephone: (867) 667-3391
Email: economicdevelopment-yukon-developpementeconomique@rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca