The federal government pledged $1.3 million in funding Monday for a program operated by the Calgary police to prevent young people from becoming radicalized.

Spread over five years, the money from Ottawa's Community Resilience Fund will go toward the Calgary Police Service's ReDirect program , which aims to intervene with young people before they are drawn into violent extremist ideologies.

"The Government of Canada is proud to support ReDirect, a made-in-Calgary approach that combines the latest research and a multi-agency, collaborative approach to provide youth at-risk of radicalization with the support they need," said Calgary cabinet minister Kent Hehr, who made the announcement on behalf of Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale.

ReDirect, a two-year-old partnership between the City of Calgary's community and neighbourhood services, CPS and other professional partners, is aimed at keeping young people from becoming involved in extremist groups, such as white supremacy or the radical Islamic movement.

The program works with community partners to help police identify those at risk of being swayed by radical religious or political ideologies.

"Radicalization is not something that police can address on our own," said Calgary police Chief Roger Chaffin.

"It is a community issue that can only be solved when all levels of government, community organizations and citizens come together to help young people vulnerable to radicalization."

The new funding will boost ReDirect's budget for projects in 2018-19 to $4.4 million. For 2019-20 and beyond, the Community Resilience Fund will have $7 million available each year for existing and new projects.