OTTAWA, ONTARIO, March 18, 2009—The Honourable Marjory LeBreton, Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister of State (Seniors), on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, today announced Government of Canada support for more than 900 projects across the country that will benefit seniors by improving the facilities and equipment needed in their communities.
“The Government of Canada is proud to support seniors in building and strengthening communities across our country,” said Minister LeBreton. “These projects will enable the continuation of programs and activities that allow seniors to stay involved in their communities.”
More than $11 million will be available for the projects under the Capital Assistance component of the New Horizons for Seniors Program, which helps organizations that support seniors to replace outdated equipment or undertake needed renovations. Funding is provided to non-profit organizations that have been delivering community programs and activities to seniors for a minimum of two years. These projects include seniors’ clubs and centres, ethnocultural organizations, service clubs and Aboriginal organizations.
Eligible activities could include repairs or renovations to existing seniors’ community facilities, or the purchase or replacement of equipment and furnishings required for community programs and activities for seniors.
With two additional components of the New Horizons for Seniors Program—Community Participation and Leadership and Elder Abuse Awareness—the overall budget of the Program is now $35 million per year.
On February 17, 2009, Ministers LeBreton and Finley announced over $15 million in funding to over 800 projects across Canada through the Community Participation and Leadership component of the New Horizons for Seniors Program.
Since its beginning, the New Horizons for Seniors Program has funded over 5,000 projects in hundreds of communities across Canada. For more information about the Program, please visit www.hrsdc.gc.ca/seniors.
In Canada’s Economic Action Plan, the federal government made a clear commitment to protect Canadians, including seniors, in difficult times by implementing several key measures:
- Increasing the Age Credit by $1,000 for 2009 and beyond to allow eligible seniors to receive up to an additional $150 in annual tax savings.
- Providing seniors with $200 million in tax relief by reducing the required minimum withdrawal amount for 2008 from Registered Retirement Income Funds by 25 percent, in recognition of the impact of the deterioration in market conditions on retirement savings.
- Helping older workers and their families through these tough economic times by investing an additional $60 million over three years in the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers, and by expanding the number of eligible communities to include older workers in small cities.
- Providing $400 million over two years through the Affordable Housing Initiative for the construction of housing units for low-income seniors.
- Establishing an independent Task Force to make recommendations on a cohesive national strategy on financial literacy for Canadians.
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This news release is available in alternative formats upon request.
For further information (media only):
Michelle Bakos
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Finley
819-994-2482
Media Relations Office
Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
819-994-5559
New Horizons for Seniors Program
Across Canada, the New Horizons for Seniors Program (NHSP) helps ensure that seniors are able to actively contribute to and benefit from the quality of life in their communities.
Building on the success of the NHSP, in Budget 2007, the Government of Canada increased the Program’s budget by $10 million per year to provide capital assistance for repairs to facilities and equipment related to existing seniors’ programs, and to raise awareness of elder abuse across Canada. This has increased the total budget for the NHSP to $35 million per year.
As a result of the additional $10 million, the Program offers three types of funding to organizations:
- Community Participation and Leadership funding (up to $25,000 in funding): This funding supports community-based projects across Canada. The projects encourage seniors to continue to play an important role in their communities by helping those in need, providing leadership and sharing their knowledge and skills with others.
- Capital Assistance funding (up to $25,000 in funding): This funding helps non‑profit organizations that need to upgrade facilities or equipment used for existing seniors’ programs and activities. It enables seniors to continue to lead active lives by participating in existing programs and activities in their communities.
- Elder Abuse Awareness funding (up to $250,000 in funding annually over a maximum of three years): This funding helps non-profit organizations and coalitions raise awareness of the abuse of older adults on a national or regional level. Through this funding, new educational and awareness resources about elder abuse will be available to improve quality of life, safety and security for seniors.
- Funding Breakdown by Province and Territory -
*No applications were received in the Nunavut territory during this Call for Proposals.
