FONOM, NOMA and NOSDA Working Together to Benefit Northern Municipalities
Date published: Monday, June 1, 2015
The Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities (FONOM), the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association (NOMA), and the Northern Ontario Service Deliverers Association (NOSDA) have formalized their working relationship by holding their first joint meeting by teleconference on May 14, 2015.
All three organizations’ held their respective annual conferences during the months of April and May where the need to work more collaboratively arose. With the development of a structured working relationship, the organizations will meet regularly and on an as needed basis to discuss current and long-term issues and strategies from a Northern Ontario perspective.
Previously, FONOM and NOMA had developed an informal working relationship by communicating at the Board and staff level in an effort to share common positions as well as addressing urgent and ongoing issues. The inclusion of NOSDA will add expertise related to community health and social service delivery that will benefit all municipalities across the North when advocating to the provincial government.
The first meeting provided an opportunity for the organizations to share feedback on their respective Annual General Meetings, identify common priority issues, initial planning for the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) delegations in August as well as the development of next steps.
“By committing to communicate and share information on a regular basis, it will allow us to better position ourselves to effectively advocate to the Province,” says Mayor Al Spacek of Kapuskasing and President of FONOM.
“Once again the north is demonstrating the cohesive working relationships we have developed to move common issues forward,” said Mayor David Canfield, NOMA president. “This working relationship further enhances our collective ability to bring a larger, northern voice to the forefront,” added Canfield.
Iain Angus, the Chair of NOSDA stated that “As the youngest of the three organizations, NOSDA, the collective voice of the District Social Services Boards and Greater Sudbury, the one Consolidated Municipal Service Manager in Northern Ontario, welcomes the opportunity to work with its municipal partners in improving the lives of all citizens of the North. By working together we can only strengthen our voice.”
The organizations will meet again next month.
For More Information:
Al Spacek
President of FONOM
705-335-0001
Dave Canfield
President of NOMA
807-467-2018 (Office)
807-468-1115 (Cell)
Iain Angus
Chair of NOSDA
807-474-0926