Fund to support attraction and sustainable settlement in Côte-Nord

• The applicant must be a legally constituted social economy enterprise, cooperative, or business (excluding those in the financial sector) with a head office or permanent establishment in Côte-Nord.
• Non-profit organizations, municipalities, regional county municipalities, municipal sector organizations, intermunicipal boards, Indigenous communities (band councils), and educational sector organizations are eligible.
• The project submitted must be a one-time initiative of limited duration, not related to ongoing operating expenses.
• The applicant or involved parties must have maintained a permanent establishment in Côte-Nord for at least one year (except in new joint ventures, where each party must meet this criterion).
• Applicants must provide a minimum contribution of 20% of total project costs, which can be financial, human, or material resources from non-governmental sources.

Who is eligible?

• Social economy enterprises and cooperatives
• Legally constituted businesses in Quebec or Canada with a head office or establishment in Côte-Nord (excluding certain sectors)
• Non-profit organizations (NPOs)
• Municipalities, regional county municipalities (MRCs), and municipal sector organizations
• Intermunicipal boards
• Indigenous communities (band councils)
• Organizations in the education sector

Who is not eligible

• Companies in the retail and restaurant sectors.
• Publicly listed companies.
• Government agencies and Crown corporations as defined by Quebec's Financial Administration Act.
• Health and social service integrated centers (CISSS/CIUSSS).
• Companies or organizations registered in the Register of Enterprises Ineligible for Public Contracts (RENA).

Eligible expenses

• Expenses necessary and directly related to the execution of approved initiatives, as outlined in the pre-agreement letter.
• Salaries for additional human resources directly assigned to carrying out the approved initiatives.

Eligible geographic areas

• Businesses with a head office or permanent establishment located in the Côte-Nord region, Quebec.
• Organizations situated within one of the six regional county municipalities (MRCs) of Côte-Nord:
• MRC de La Haute-Côte-Nord
• MRC de Manicouagan
• MRC de Caniapiscau
• MRC de Sept-Rivières
• MRC de Minganie
• MRC du Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent

• Alignment with one of the three regional priorities (workforce, youth and immigrant attraction and retention; positive image promotion of Côte-Nord; community education and engagement).
• Quality of project implementation.
• Diversified and realistic project financing.
• Support, financial commitment and/or partnerships with the community.
• Concrete benefits and regional impact of the project.

• All applications are evaluated independently, even if a promoter submits more than one project per year.
• The average response time after project submission is 45 business days.
• A public announcement and visibility protocol will be implemented for selected projects.
• A pre-agreement confirming the financial plan must be validated by the mandated MRC before starting the project.