Set up jointly by Canada Economic Development and the Sociétés d'aide au developement des collectivités de l'Outaouais – the Outaouais SADCs, the Entreprises rurales Outaouais (ERO) – Rural Enterprises Outaouais (REO) program aims at promoting the emergence of new businesses and the expansion of existing businesses in various targeted activity sectors such as high technology, tourism and the development of niche products.

Entreprises rurales Outaouais proposes two components involving promotional activities and commercial activities.

Component I

Promotional activities that are expected to lead to new business start-up or old business expansion.

Example :

• Stimulation of rural entrepreneurship
• Identification of new business opportunities
• Partner promotion and support
• Networking, alliances and subcontractors needed to develop niche products.

Component II

Commercial activities such as development of a marketing strategy, product adaptation and technical development, etc. The aim here is to provide direct financial assistance to developers with a view to helping them turn their projects into reality.

General Eligibility Criteria

The following may apply for funding: individuals, microenterprises, groups and associations that support rural development, and microenterprises in the prestart-up, start-up and development phases whose annual turnover is less than $500 000.

The projects must meet the following criteria:

• They exclusively target small communities with populations of 15,000 or less
• They help resolve local problems identified by SADCs
• They supply the local market with products and services that stand out because of their distinctiviveness, high quality or originality.

Form of assistance

The financial support can vary, depending on the needs of the business and the benefits of the project. Eligible costs are those that the steering and recommending committee considers reasonable and necessary for achieving the project.