Saguenay – The governments of Canada and Quebec are granting a total of over $1.6 million in financial support to the Aluminium Valley Society to develop and implement a digital marketing strategy among 95 businesses. Twenty of these businesses will be mentored through the full digital marketing process, while the other 75 will gain in visibility by joining Alliance Métal Québec’s Réseau de commercialisation numérique.
The Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED), Soraya Martinez Ferrada, and the Minister of Economy, Innovation and Energy, Minister Responsible for Regional Economic Development, and Minister Responsible for the Metropolis and the Montréal Region, Pierre Fitzgibbon, along with the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Minister Responsible for the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean Region, Andrée Laforest, made the announcement today.
The Government of Canada is providing a non-repayable contribution of $459,254 under CED’s Regional Economic Growth through Innovation program. For its part, the Government of Quebec is granting a total of $1,145,615, including $818,350 out of the additional $50 million confirmed up to 2025 in the 2023‑2024 budget to pursue the Offensive de transformation numérique (OTN), as well as $327,265 under the Programme d’appui aux projets de développement économique.
The aim of the Aluminium Valley Society’s project is to facilitate aluminum businesses’ access, through personalized mentoring, to international markets through digital means. It will enable them to maximize their investment, learn and evolve in an efficient collaborative structure adapted to their reality, and increase their international sales.
“SMEs and organizations are at the core of innovation and economic growth in our communities, and supporting their growth is a priority for our government. Through our financial assistance, the Aluminium Valley Society will be able to develop a global digital marketing strategy and offer its strategic mentoring service to aluminum businesses. Its contribution to the Saguenay‒Lac-Saint-Jean region’s economic vitality is important, and our entire economy will benefit from the success and spin-offs of its project.” – Soraya Martinez Ferrada, MP for Hochelaga, Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for CED