Welcome to Northern Ontario!
Prepared By: Northern Development Division
Ministry of Northern Development, Mines and Forestry
Agenda
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Geography
Population
Aboriginal Population
Francophone Population
Labour Force Characteristics
Unemployment
Education
Transportation
Industrial Structure
Manufacturing in Northern Ontario
Incentives for Northern Ontario
Ontario’s North
• Northern Ontario covers
over 800,000 square
kilometres, representing
close to 90% of the
provincial land mass
• Northern Ontario borders
Quebec, Manitoba,
Minnesota, Michigan,
Hudson Bay and James
Bay
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Population - General
• Northern Ontario’s population is approximately 786,000,
representing over 6% of the provincial population
• Population density of approximately 1 person per km2 in Northern
Ontario, versus 109 people per km2 in Southern Ontario
• 56% of Northern Ontario’s population resides in 5 major centres
(Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay, and Timmins)
• Northern Ontario’s rural population represents 35% of the total
northern population. In Southern Ontario, only 11% of the
population lives in rural areas
Source: 2006 Census
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Aboriginal Population
• 12.5% of the North’s population is
Aboriginal (up from 10% in 2001)
• 40.4% of Ontario’s Aboriginal
population resides in the North
• 29% of Ontario’s Aboriginal
population is under 15 years of age
Source: 2006 Census
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Francophone Population
• Approximately 24% of the province’s
Francophone population resides in the
North, representing close to 18% of the
northern population
• Northeastern Ontario has the highest
concentration of Francophones;
Francophones represent 22% of the
Northeast’s population while less than
2% in Northwestern Ontario
Source: Office of Francophone Affairs
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Labour Force Characteristics - 2009
• Total Labour Force:
387,700
• Labour Force – Employed:
355,100
• Employment in the North had increased by almost 6% over the
period from 1997 to 2008 and then in 2009, it decreased by close
to 5% over a one year period. Employment increased by over
3,000 workers between 2009 and 2010.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey
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Unemployment
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The unemployment rate for Northern Ontario in 2010 is lower than the provincial
rate - 8.4% in Northern Ontario (up from 6.6% in 2008) compared to 8.7% for
Ontario
Historically, the unemployment rate in the North has been on average 2% higher
than the Province
Unemployment Rate Trend 1988 - 2010
14.0
12.0
Unemployment Rate (%)
Northern Ontario
Ontario
Difference
10.0
8.0
6.0
4.0
2.0
0.0
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
-2.0
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey
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1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
Education Status
• Universities – 4; Community Colleges - 6
• Approximately 39,000 post-secondary students
• As a proportion of Northern Ontario’s population 25 years to 64
years:
– 81% have a Secondary School Diploma
– 38% have a Trade Certificate or College Diploma
– 17% have a University Degree
Source: 2001 and 2006 Census
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Transportation
• Approximately 45,000 kilometres of all-season roads in Northern
Ontario, including:
– 11,000 kilometres of highway network
– 4,400 kilometres of local roads
– 30,000 kilometres of forest access roads (est.)
• 3,024 kilometres of winter roads to 31 remote northern First
Nation communities
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Transportation cont
• Northern Ontario’s rail network consists of 7,000 kilometres of
rail lines
• 63 municipal and remote airports across the North
• 2 marine ports in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system,
Port of Thunder Bay and Port of Sault Ste Marie, serving 3,700
kilometres of waterway
• Four main Canada-USA border crossings in Northern Ontario
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Business and Industry
• There are 41,862 established business locations in Northern
Ontario, with over 83% hiring less than 10 employees
• Approximately 5,390 retail establishments
• Only 0.5% of businesses have 200 employees or more and
are concentrated in education institutions, hospitals, mining
companies, manufacturing companies, and government
• There are about 150 businesses that support activities within
the forestry sector, 190 businesses that support activities in
the mining sector
Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Patterns 2010
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Industrial Structure - % of Total Employment (2009)
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Health care and social assistance
Trade
Educational services
Construction
Manufacturing
Public administration
Accommodation and food services
Forestry, fishing, mining, oil and gas
Transportation and warehousing
Other services
Finance, insurance, real estate and leasing
Professional, scientific and technical
services
Information, culture and recreation
Business, building and other support
services
Utilities
Agriculture
Mining and forestry accounted for 5.5% of the North’s total employment in 2009 (down from 6.5% in 2008), compared to
only 0.5% for Ontario.
Northern Ontario is more reliant on public sector employment, including public administration, education and health care
sectors, accounting for 32.5% of the North’s total employment in 2009, compared to 23.5% for the province.
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey
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Examples of Large Employers in Northern Ontario
Employees (approx)
Location
Mining
Vale INCO
5,300
Greater Sudbury
Xstrata PLC
2,000
Greater Sudbury
Dumas Contracting
1,100
Timmins
ICT and Business Services
Teletech Holdings
850
Greater Sudbury
Sutherland Group
435
Sault Ste. Marie
Teleperformance
400
Thunder Bay
MCCI
350
Thunder Bay
Advanced Manufacturing
Essar Steel Algoma Inc.
Bombardier Transportation
3,300
Sault Ste. Marie
650
Thunder Bay
Buchanan Group Northern Wood
610
Thunder Bay
Abitibi Bowater
500
Thunder Bay
St. Mary’s Paper Limited
400
Sault Ste. Marie
Sudbury Regional Hospital
3,200
Greater Sudbury
Thunder Bay Health Services Centre
2,500
Thunder Bay
St. Joseph’s Care Group
1,700
Thunder Bay
Forestry
Health Care
*List only includes companies from Greater Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Timmins and Sault Ste. Marie and does not include grocery or retail businesses
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Forest Products Sector
• In 2008, the value of Ontario’s forestry sector was almost $14
billion
• The value of Ontario’s forest products exports (95% bound for
the U.S.) was $4 billion in 2009
– Forest products industry in Ontario employed 54,200 people
in 2009 (down from 64,300 in 2007, 82,800 in 2000): 4,300
in forestry & logging (includes support activities)
– 25,600 in wood product manufacturing
– 24,300 in paper manufacturing
• Support activities for the forest industry employed 4,500 people
in 2009
• Of the total people employed in the forestry industry in Ontario,
approximately 13,000 are located in the North
Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey Extract
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Value-Added Forestry
• The forest products industry in Northern Ontario is continuously
adapting to maintain its competitive position in the global
marketplace
• Companies are looking toward value-added products such as
engineered wood, renewable fuels and chemicals, speciality
papers, and pre-fabricated buildings and components
• Ontario’s forests also offer significant opportunities for
green/alternative energy and biofuels, biomass, and wood
pellets
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Mining Sector
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Ontario mining generates more than $1 billion in labour income annually; mining in
Northern Ontario employs approximately 13,000 people, with an additional 2,500
(estimate) employed in exploration activities
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An estimated 500 mining equipment and supply companies are located in
Northern Ontario
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In 2009, Ontario produced approximately $6.33 billion worth of minerals (about
60% metallic and 40% non-metallic minerals)
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In 2009, a total of $469 million was spent on mineral exploration and deposit
appraisal in Ontario (down from a record of $799 million in 2008). Forecasts for
2010 exploration and deposit appraisal expenditures are estimated to reach $608
million
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Ring of Fire
– ~$2.5 billion in total capital in the first phase of development
– 3280 permanent jobs (first phase)
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Mining Supplies and Services
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There are an estimated 500 mining service and supply (MSS) companies located
in Northern Ontario supplying mining services and advanced equipment to
hundreds of exploration and development projects in dozens of countries
Northern Ontario's is a world leader in mine automation and rehabilitation, with
cutting edge companies supplying the latest methods, technologies, and
equipment to global markets
In recent years there has been an emergence of higher technology services
supplied and developed by numerous companies located in Northern Ontario.
These services include:
– robotic control systems;
– underground communication systems;
– 3D surveying; and
– fragmentation analysis
The MSS Sector has a value of $5.6 billion per year in Northern Ontario and
employs 23,000 people
Other projects of note:
– India/Ontario Joint Working Group
– Diamond supply chain
Manufacturing Sector
• Approximately 1,258 manufacturing firms operate in Northern
Ontario - 268 involved in wood or paper products
• Employs over 24,000 workers and produce a broad range of
products
– From fire extinguishers to disc drives, avionics systems to
computerized diamond drills, scheduling software to
aluminum and steel subway cars, etc.
Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Patterns 2010, Labour Force Survey 2009
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ICT and Business Services Sector
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Northern Ontario's telecommunications infrastructure and industry
(including secondary services such as Internet service providers, call
centres, Website developers, and on-line businesses) has grown
dramatically
The North has attracted a sizeable contact centre community due to
robust telecom infrastructure available throughout the region. There are
many factors that attract call centres to this vibrant region, including:
– low communications costs
– available educated workforce
– large bilingual population
– available and affordable commercial space
– excellent quality of life
Government Support – Capital and Infrastructure
Incentives for Northern Ontario
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Northern Ontario Heritage Fund
Fednor
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Financial assistance to stimulate job
creation and economic growth in
Northern Ontario
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Promotes economic development,
diversification and job creation in
Northern Ontario
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Contribution of 50% match, up to $1
million in the form of combination
grants and loans, to offset capital
start-up costs
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Assists companies by:
– Enhancing telecommunication
infrastructure and networks
– ICT technology applications
– Building high-speed data
linkages
Thank You!
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