Regional Development Authorities

The primary function of the Regional Development Authorities is to integrate and coordinate the activities of local development groups and/or undertake activities to accomplish common objectives within the regions where each one is located. This is so that communities may build competitiveness and capitalize on market opportunities.

Eligibility Criteria

All potential businesses/community groups/entrepreneurs within the following community regions : Antigonish, Cape Breton, Colchester, Cumberland, Greater Halifax, Guysborough, Halifax County, Hants, Strait-Highlands, Kings, Lunenburg/Queens, Pictou, South West Shore and the Western Valley.

Summary

Regional Development Authorities (RDA), is the generic name used to identify the umbrella organizations for Community Economic Development (CED) in Nova Scotia. Community Economic Development (CED) is a locally driven process to improve the economic viability of communities. The main goal of Community Economic Development is to capitalize upon local opportunities that strengthen the community by effectively building and deploying its human resources, its community infrastructure and its business development assets.

The responsibility of each RDA is to ensure that a widely-accepted strategic plan is in place to form the basis of its and other community activities. By creating the RDA's as lead agencies, the communities will have more responsibility regarding authority and coordination involving Community Economic Development decisions.

Functions of a Regional Development Authority (Which may vary from RDA to RDA) :

• Business Development and Counselling - The RDA is the "first-stop" source of assistance for business counselling and related services for a specific region.
• Human Resource Development - One of the RDAs' activities is to assist in connecting adequate opportunities to residents in acquiring the education and training necessary to their long-term well-being and the continued well-being of the community. Some of these institutions include community colleges, universities, school boards, businesses and chambers of commerce, Nova Scotia Community Services, equity groups and Human Resource and Skills Development Canada.
• Strategic planning and evaluation - The RDA is responsible for long-term strategic economic planning for an entire region. This involves assisting communities and sectors to develop their own capacity for planning as well as ensuring that there is consistency in the planning methodology, not necessarily the results.
• Financial Assistance Delivery - RDA's have a thorough working knowledge of relevant federal and provincial financial assistance programs. This knowledge is then used to assist clients in properly applying for same.
• Sectorial Development - RDA staff play an on-going liaison role directly with local associations, which assist them in analyzing problems and opportunities within the existing economic base as well as assisting the economic sectors in identifying future opportunities for growth.
• Community Development - RDA's support and assist Local Development Associations and Community Development Groups. Such local organizations are viewed with considerable importance in terms of the development of long-term strategic direction.
• Communications and Public Relations - RDA's make communication and public relations a high priority in order to sustain the volunteer activity and community support necessary to be successful. A primary focus is communication activities within a region to promote the RDA and improve awareness as well as understanding of the Community Economic Development process itself.
• Information Research - RDA's take a lead role in compiling and analyzing information and statistics on a region. RDA staff are capable of conducting preliminary research as well as supervising any contracted research activity in order to ensure that any such activity is of an acceptable nature.
• Advocacy and Lobbying - Issues of concern and relevance to the region, local communities and economic sectors are relayed to the three levels of government, financial institutions, the media and others. RDA Board members, staff and other volunteers undertake this role on behalf of a specific region.

For further information, please contact the Nova Scotia Office of Economic Development.

For a listing of RDAs throughout Nova Scotia, please refer to Internet site: The embedded asset has been deleted:
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Nova Scotia Contact(s):
Nova Scotia Office of Economic Development
Centennial Building
1660 Hollis Street, Suite 600
P.O. Box 2311
Halifax, Nova Scotia  B3J 1V7
Telephone: (902) 424-0377
Fax: (902) 424-0514
E-mail: comm@gov.ns.ca
Web site: http://www.gov.ns.ca/econ/