Community Futures Development Corporations in British Columbia

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Community Futures Development Corporations (CFDCs) take a grassroots approach to community and economic development outside major urban centres. There are 34 CFDCs across British Columbia serving 98 percent of the province’s rural population. These services include:

• Helping clients identify and access government programs and services
• Providing access to capital for small businesses through the provision of loans, loan guarantees and equity investments; and
• Business counselling and training for entrepreneurs starting or expanding their business;
• Working with community partners to identify community economic development and diversification opportunities;
• Community-based strategic economic planning and implementation

CFDCs are non-profit entities, governed by a volunteer board of directors representing a broad range of community interests.  CFDC boards operate on the principle that local decision-making and local development are keys to helping communities successfully build  entrepreneurial capacity, thrive, and shape healthy futures. 

Community economic development guides all CFDC activities. As such, CFDCs often act as facilitators, bringing together diverse groups to develop a shared vision of the future, and integrate community resources into a long-term strategy. 

CFDCs provide repayable loans on commercial terms of up to $150,000.  Loans, loan guarantees and equity investments are provided to small businesses unable to obtain sufficient funding from banks or other traditional lending institutions.  CFDCs also provide a wide range of business counselling services to the small business community. 

On an annual basis, CFDCs provide an average of 1000 loans valued at more than $25 million creating and maintaining an average of 4000 private sector jobs in B.C.’s rural communities.  These loans also leverage other sources of capital at a rate of almost 2 to 1. CFDCs core operations, investment capital and community economic adjustment projects are funded through Western Economic Diversification Canada.

For information contact: 

Community Futures Development Association of BC
Suite 1056, 409 Granville Street
Vancouver BC, V6C 1T2

Telephone: (604) 685-2332
Fax: (604) 681-6575
E-mail: info@communityfutures.ca
Website: http://www.communityfuturescanada.ca/