:
Good morning, members and witnesses.
This is the 32nd meeting of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development. This morning, we have with us the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.
[English]
The minister has brought officials with him representing both the department and the new Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency. Members will recall that this is in fact the first meeting of what will be a comprehensive study on the question of barriers and opportunities for economic development in Canada's north.
Minister, we're delighted to have you here with us this morning to really start off what we know will be an important study, certainly for our committee, but we also believe for Parliament, as we examine these critical issues in the north.
As is customary, we'll open with our 10-minute presentation and then we'll go directly to questions from members. I think you have to leave after the first hour, so perhaps we can do that first and leave the second hour for the officials who are with you. It's up to you. If you wish to do more formal introductions of the officials who are with you today, we certainly welcome that also.
Minister, you have the floor.
:
Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman and committee members. It is a delight to be here.
I do think you're embarking on a very important study. It's timely, and there's a lot of excitement about the potential in the north and the reality in the north. I think your study is going to be of great assistance to the department and to the government and the ministry. I look forward to your work and encourage you in it. I think it's the cutting edge of some very exciting things, so I look forward to your reports as you go through this.
I'm pleased to be here today to speak to you about economic development in the north and its importance within the government's northern strategy, as well as our recent progress in establishing the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, or CanNor.
[Translation]
Allow me to begin by introducing the people with me today: Nicole Jauvin, who was recently appointed Deputy Minister and President of CanNor, Michel Robillard, Vice-President of CanNor — I believe he now lives in Iqaluit —, and Patrick Borbey, Assistant Deputy Minister for Northern Affairs at Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.
[English]
The natural resources endowment of the north is tremendous. Estimates place one-third of Canada's remaining resources of conventional petroleum in the north. Private sector expenditures in exploration of the offshore hydrocarbon potential in the Beaufort, for example, will total $2 billion over the next eight years. These activities will also generate significant economic opportunities and direct benefits for the north.
With five mines operating in the north, Canada has become the world's fourth largest diamond producer by volume. More than 30 mines of different kinds could be in operation in the next 15 years, a production increase from $1.6 billion to $10.5 billion, with direct employment booming at over 11,000 people.
Of course, the economic downturn has had an impact up north as it has all over the world, so the recovery will take some time. Mineral prices, with the exception of gold and a partial recovery in the diamond prices as well, are overall much lower than they were a year ago, and private sector investment is down as well. The economic downturn has also resulted in job losses and declining employment and participation rates across the north.
But I believe we do have every reason to be optimistic. The economy will recover, and the resource sector will continue to be the most important driver of economic development in the north. That's why we must ensure that the conditions are right for development, that development happens in a sustainable way, and that northerners are full participants at every step and derive maximum benefits.
[Translation]
The promotion of social and economic development is one of the four cornerstones of our Northern Strategy, which was initially unveiled by the Prime Minister in August 2007 and recently confirmed in the document titled “Canada's Northern Strategy: Our North, Our Heritage, Our Future“, which I and Minister Cannon tabled jointly this summer.
[English]
If you haven't already done so, I would encourage you to review the northern strategy documents—I believe we have some copies around today—and visit the northern strategy website at northernstrategy.gc.ca. There is much valuable information about our vision for the north, as well as the many accomplishments and commitments made to date.
There are, of course, four pillars to the northern strategy with which you're familiar: economic and social development, environmental protection, improving and devolving governance, and sovereignty. We've already taken significant action under all four pillars of that strategy. For example, we are procuring new arctic offshore patrol ships and a new polar class icebreaker, the strongest ever in the Canadian Coast Guard fleet. Important work has been done to toughen pollution laws by extending the enforcement zone of the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act to 200 nautical miles, the full extent of our exclusive economic zone.
To help address the problems of inadequate and unaffordable housing, we provided $200 million over two years to support the renovation and construction of new social housing units in the territories, including $100 million for Nunavut, where the need for new social housing is greatest. This is, of course, in addition to the $300 million in the Northern Housing Trust, announced in 2006.
[Translation]
To maximize the economic potential of the North, we have started to "map" northern resources through the energy and mines geomapping program.
[English]
To ensure that the conditions are right for development, we are continuing to make changes to the northern regulatory regime through the northern regulatory improvement initiative. I'm looking forward to bringing into the House this fall the legislative proposal for the Nunavut planning and project assessment act, and hope to have the support of committee members on this. I will continue to work with my cabinet colleagues to bring further changes forward. I'm also looking forward to engaging in dialogue with northerners and aboriginal organizations on further streamlining of the regulatory regime to unlock barriers to development.
To help ensure that northerners have the skills required for the growing number and diversity of economic opportunities, we have enhanced the aboriginal skills and employment partnership program. I am pleased to report that three new projects were recently announced for the north, one in each of the territories.
I will turn now to the specific and important milestone of our northern strategy, the establishment of CanNor, the new economic development agency for the north. The government's intention to create CanNor was first articulated in the November 2008 Speech from the Throne. Canada's economic action plan provided $50 million over five years to establish the agency.
[Translation]
I was delighted to accompany the Prime Minister to Iqaluit last August when he officially announced the creation of CanNor, whose head office will be located in Iqaluit. The announcement was the crowning touch on months of work during which staff and I talked to northern residents about the new agency and its operations and structures.
[English]
In terms of its mandate, CanNor will promote economic development in Canada's three territories by: first, delivering its own suite of regional economic development programs in the territories; second, coordinating and serving as the regional delivery agent for certain national economic initiatives; third, developing policy and research, and playing an advocacy role to support effective program delivery in the long-term prosperity of northerners.
:
The problem could be my French.
Some voices: Ah, ah!
Hon. Chuck Strahl: No, it couldn't be.
[English]
Perhaps I can just give an overview now of the key programs that the new agency delivers in the north.
The first program is strategic investments in northern economic development, or SINED. SINED was renewed as part of Canada's economic action plan, with funding of $90 million over five years split equally among the three territories. The program focuses on long-term economic development through investments that strengthen the driver sectors of the other territorial economies. It helps diversify the economies or enables northerners to more fully participate in the territorial economies themselves.
One of the unique features of the SINED program is its use of the five-year investment plans, which are developed in collaboration with territorial governments, aboriginal leaders, and the private sector. Those investment plans help guide investment decisions over the five-year framework of the program and ensure that funding is deployed in a strategic and collaborative manner. There's no doubt in my mind that one of the reasons there was so much support for SINED, which has been our flagship investment program in the north, was the collaborative way in which we put together the five-year investment plans working with northerners.
Aboriginal economic development programming is an important part of the agency's suite of programs in recognition of the fact that aboriginal peoples make up more than half the population of the territories. These programs include aboriginal community economic development programs and Aboriginal Business Canada, which focuses on aboriginal business formation and expansion. While these programs remain national in scope, program delivery in the territories will be handled by CanNor, so there will obviously be a synergy working within that agency.
It's worth noting that our government's recently released aboriginal economic development framework sets new priorities for aboriginal economic development programming, including the programs transferred to CanNor. Officials in the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs will be engaging aboriginal leaders this winter in a discussion around how these programs can be improved and better reflect the priorities that have already been outlined in the framework. The agency also delivers the northern component of two stimulus programs announced as part of our economic action plan: the community adjustment fund and the recreational infrastructure Canada fund, or the RInC fund.
Finally, CanNor is responsible for the northern projects management office, or NPMO. NPMO will lead federal efforts to consult on, coordinate, manage, and track resource development projects in the three territories. For the first time, project proponents will gain access to a full range of services from a single provider, facilitating regulatory review and consultation processes. The office will also coordinate the work of federal regulatory departments and agencies during the environmental assessment and permitting phases.
Establishing this type of office is one of the recommendations of Mr. Neil McCrank, who was asked to consider ways of improving the regulatory environment in the territories. He appeared before this committee in the spring. Ultimately, the goal of the NPMO will be to achieve a more transparent, predictable, and timely review process for major resource projects and to make a positive difference in how we do business in the north.
[Translation]
The final area of responsibility I would like to mention is skills development. One of the main objectives of the new agency is to ensure that northern residents participate in and benefit from economic development initiatives carried out in the territories. The Prime Minister made this point several times during his recent Arctic tour.
[English]
In recognition of the important link between skills development and economic development, we plan to embed staff from the Department of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada in CanNor in Iqaluit. Their role will be twofold: to work with northerners to facilitate access to national skills development programs and to work with CanNor staff to ensure that skills development is an integral part of the agency's investment decisions.
This arrangement is essentially a pilot project and, if successful, could be expanded over time, but obviously we're very hopeful that this linkage between skills development and economic development, which is a logical one, will be made easier with CanNor's liaison with HRSDC.
I'm excited by the progress we've made to date in implementing CanNor, as I am excited by the progress we've made in delivering our northern strategy overall. I'm confident that our government is on the right track.
In fact, I was pleased to receive correspondence from the mayors of Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik, in which they said, “As CanNor makes the announcements today for the funding for the all-weather road study between Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk, we would like to extend a particular debt of gratitude to you for the expedient manner in which our application was dealt with and the gracious funding commitment made by your department.”
That's really a tribute, I think, to the fact that CanNor's staff hit the ground running. A lot of preparatory work went into this following the announcement in 2008. Following the Prime Minister's announcement this summer, we were able to make announcements on decisions that had been made in consultation with northerners and that have been quickly perceived, I believe, as the start of a new relationship with northerners, where decisions are made in the north, many of them through this northern agency and working closely with them.
I know that we are all committed to achieving the objective of providing this foundation for a prosperous economic future for those who live, work, and support their families in the north, so again I look forward, as I mentioned earlier, to your proceedings, studies, and reports.
I would be pleased to now take any questions you may have.
Merci beaucoup.
:
The difficulty, of course, is that while I certainly have talked to the justice minister, the handling of that file is primarily in the justice minister's hands and not in my own. I can't commit another minister to a timetable, but I can say that there have been ongoing discussions.
When I was in Yukon recently, as you know, at the intergovernmental forum, certainly this did come up and we had discussions on it. Not only was it a bilateral discussion, but it was a discussion that was important at the intergovernmental forum as well. There has been good progress made on that, and my sense of it is that things continue to progress.
As you say, this predates not only this Parliament but this government. But certainly I was able to give assurances from my perspective and from the government's perspective that we're eager to put this justice agreement together with them. It's a complex thing, because it's a first time ever endeavour and it involves multiple departments.
It's never easy, but my sense of it is that progress continues to be made. While I can't speak for the justice minister, I have spoken to him and he remains committed to making that happen. I'm quite sure it will come together, but again, I can't give you a timeline because it's not just in my department.
Good morning, Mr. Minister and Ms. Jauvin.
First of all, I would like to say that we used to use the term “First Nation“, but we have changed the word to include the Inuit. The Inuit do not consider themselves a first nation, but they are willing to be referred to as “first people“. There is a university in Val d'Or that they can reach.
Mr. Minister, among the recent federal measures to promote economic development in the North, you created CanNor an agency whose head office is in Iqaluit, which implies that the agency will deal primarily with investment in the territories. We know that you have already earmarked $200 million for Quebec. This is a measure you mentioned in the introduction to the Federal Framework for Aboriginal Economic Development, which you signed. The introduction states: “The new Federal Framework for Aboriginal Economic Development builds on a number of recent federal actions to improve the participation of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people in the Canadian economy. [...]“.
Is the $200 and $300 million you are talking about administered entirely by CanNor? Does the agency have the authority to invest elsewhere than in the territories?
The amount I was talking about, the $200 million, was in reference to housing, specifically to housing investment. The $300 million was on the Northern Housing Trust. It was from an earlier budget, but it has been an effective means of improving housing in the territories. That money is not administered through CanNor, or even through my department. The trust money was handled through the territorial governments. In the case of much of the other money, social housing is done through Canada Mortgage and Housing. These were all housing announcements.
We have been able to dovetail this somewhat with skills training, with getting northerners involved in actual construction. In Iqaluit, they're building some eight-plexes. Every single person, every apprentice, is an Inuit from the territories. They are gaining certification so they can benefit more thoroughly from investments in housing.
That money I was talking about is not administered through CanNor; it comes through other commitments that have been made through territorial housing organizations.
:
I think that's an excellent question. Certainly, this was raised repeatedly during that period this summer when the Prime Minister announced the creation of the agency. Right across the north, where northerners understandably want to be assured, they were assured by the Prime Minister that the effort is to make sure it means jobs for them, influence for them, and decision-making for northerners.
Perhaps Ms. Jauvin, either now or later, could comment on efforts to make sure that we recruit people who are northerners, specifically targeting and emphasizing Inuit and first nations involvement in the agency--depending on where you are in the north--and decision-making roles, executive roles, and ensuring that the mandate of the agency is done and carried out while listening and working closely with northerners.
As I mentioned earlier, for example, as with the administrator of the SINED program, there's already a process in place to make sure that as we make these five-year investment plans, we will be working hand in hand with northerners to do that. I think it's a good example of what we can do. Whether it was at the intergovernmental forum in the Yukon, or in Yellowknife, where I was two weeks ago, each trip I make to Iqaluit and other places in Nunavut, people want assurances, and we've been able to give that. As CanNor develops, northerners will be involved at every level, and the intent is to do a lot of recruitment. In fact, there's a little bit of worry from some of the other governments in the north that it will steal all their good people. The truth is, we're recruiting, we're hiring, and we want northerners to be involved in this agency's development.
I'm pleased to have an opportunity to speak with you today, Mr. Minister.
I'm interested in first talking about the regulatory improvement initiatives that you mentioned. You mentioned Nunavut, but we haven't really talked about the Northwest Territories.
I go back to a letter in December from the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources in the Northwest Territories, where he stated quite clearly that their vision is that the regulatory changes would function in NWT's public interest, allow for decisions to be made in the NWT by NWT residents, and would facilitate the eventual devolution of authorities to the Government of the Northwest Territories, because of course regulatory systems are where much authority is taken over resource development.
You've now established a northern projects management office in Iqaluit. How is this going to advance the direction that the Government of the Northwest Territories wants to see with the regulatory system in providing more authority and more direction from the people of the north? How is this not going to be simply another bureaucratic instrument in the process that will actually make it further away from devolution?
It's important I think to note that not only does CanNor have offices in each of the territories and headquarters in the north, but of course the headquarters of the NPMO are in Yellowknife, which is going to make it particularly useful, especially in early days, for businesses and governments and so on in the Northwest Territories.
Even if no other changes were to take place in the regulatory system--and this is not the case, it's not what's going to happen--and the status quo was what we had to live with, and I don't think anybody at any level of government or first nations government says the status quo is ideal, my vision for the northern major projects office would be this. When somebody comes in and they want to develop a new diamond mine, they say, “I want to work with your office to walk through the existing regulatory regime to make sure that we sequence whatever studies have to be done, that we talk to the right boards, that we don't miss talking to DFO in the right sequence, that we ensure that all of the approvals are done in a timely way, and that you can help me navigate the maze.” I hear frequently up north that kind of complaint. It's just hard to figure out every single step, and people will come back and say, “I had to backtrack and go through this process and it took an extra six months,” or something like that.
I think the big advantage to the NPMO, given whatever the regulatory regime is--and as devolution occurs, it will change--for the same reason we have one in the south, where we have full provincial powers, is it can help a proponent for a big project walk through it step by step, to make sure they don't miss anything and that all the approvals come through in a timely way.
As well, the NPMO will also be able to help on consultations, the consultations that are necessary with first nations, again, because I hear this all over the country, where people say, “Well, if only I had known, I would have started that consultation in a timely way.”
:
Certainly. There was a period, about 1996 or so, where as far as the federal government was concerned there was virtually no investment in economic development in the north. For seven or eight years there was almost nothing.
That started to come around with the announcement of the SINED programming, which I mentioned earlier. It was a fledgling program. Five years ago people weren't quite sure what to make of it, but it was the start of increasing investment by the government in the north. Certainly there was a period of time, from 1996, for about seven or eight years where there was almost nothing.
Right now each of these announcements not only provides some tangible benefits to northerners, it also sends a message of hope. It shows the interest of the federal government in helping northerners. It has been done in an unprecedented manner as far as investment, not just of money, which is important, but also, for example, with the creation of CanNor, which has been asked for up north for probably for 30 years. That ship has finally come in.
:
I mentioned in my opening remarks that one of the large pre-budget asks a year ago was for assurance that we were going to renew the funding for SINED. Up until recently, SINED was the only game in town up north, and people were clear right across the territories that they wanted to see it renewed. By and large, people were satisfied with the way it was being implemented. It wasn't just a one-off announcement. There was, as the name implies, an actual strategy to the investment, and northerners were involved in developing that strategy. All the territorial governments and many aboriginal groups and private companies said it was an example of how to get things done.
By housing it in CanNor, we are unleashing the energy to be gained of putting SINED together with more money in economic development. We are also housing the community adjustment fund, the RInC fund, skills and training development, and an advocacy role for CanNor, not only in the north, but also with federal agencies across the whole federal family. I believe this combination will trigger a remarkable renaissance of economic development in the north. It won't be completely one-stop shopping, but it will be as close as you can get, which is unprecedented.
I would hope you'll get input on that. It's going to be valuable to us. CanNor is in its early days, and we want to make sure that the information we gather is complete and inclusive of northerners. We want to get it right. SINED is going well, but we want the whole package to be equally well received.
Mr. Chair, I apologize. I have not prepared formal remarks. Maybe I could just say a couple of words to set the stage informally.
Obviously it's a huge privilege to have been asked to take this important position. I'm very, very excited about the challenge that faces us. I look forward to working very hard with all the different partners that we need to work with to make this agency strong and vibrant. In particular, I look forward to working with members of this committee, who I understand have a special interest in the north. Having reviewed the transcripts from the previous meetings, I hope we can contribute to that discussion.
We've been in existence for a total of eight weeks and a few hours, but the past few weeks have been very busy. We have tried, and I think we've succeeded, to maintain a focus on our priorities.
The first priority, obviously, was to continue to deliver all the programs that we need to deliver and to ensure that there was a smooth transition.
A second important priority was to build relationships across the territories with all the partners that we need to engage. A lot of the staff in the agency are known across the territories. They've been working there for a while. However, Michel and I and other senior managers are new to the north, and we felt it important to engage with partners in all the territories immediately.
Finally, another priority has been to set up the agency. I know the time of this committee is very valuable, so I will spare you the really interesting stories I could tell you about setting up an agency—getting accommodation, office space, and building passes, and so on. It's all part of the pleasure.
As I said, one of the first things we set out to do is to consult with all the different constituencies we serve in the north. Michel and I have, of course, visited all the territories now, but we need to go way beyond that and get into the communities and have a much better sense of life there.
Michel Robillard, the vice-president, has now moved to Iqaluit.
[Translation]
He's all settled in in Iqaluit, and I'm sure you'll get a chance to ask him how things are going.
[English]
Our vision beyond our official mandate is to become a credible and effective voice for the north in Ottawa, as well as a single window for northerners who want to access all the government economic programs in the north. That is something we will build over the longer term, but it's certainly an objective we want to keep in mind.
That's all I will say for now. I know you probably want to ask a lot of questions, and we'll all do our best to answer as much as we can.
:
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Before you start the clock on my questioning, let me just make an observation before we begin formally.
It's unfortunate that the minister could not stay a little bit longer, because some of the questions actually relate to the minister in his capacity as the chief administrator of not only this particular project but other issues. So I hope you will take into consideration that some of the questions we will ask would probably be better directed towards him.
[Translation]
Ms. Jauvin, Mr. Robillard and Mr. Borbey, welcome.
[English]
My compliments on your new task, your new job. It's going to be tough, but as you just heard me say to the chairman, some of the questions you may feel a little bit uncomfortable with, and that's okay. I mean, you've only been on the job eight weeks.
Let me ask you very quickly, are you familiar with the Mackenzie Valley pipeline project fund?
:
I'd like to add that about a month ago I was in Iqaluit. Iqaluit is under the Qikiqtani region, and I met with officials from the Kakivak CEDO, a community economic development organization. I was interested in learning from them how they integrate economic development and learning skill development activities. The way it's done is that when they have a project, for instance a construction project in Iqaluit, they will team up with the school to bring apprentices on board who will get formal training; then, after that, they're almost ready to start in a real job as a plumber or a carpenter and so forth.
So they have a more systemic, integrated approach to economic development, making sure that everything from learning is integrated, and they're way ahead. What we would like to do at HRSDC is develop this kind of systemic, more integrated approach, so that, for instance, if we have an economic development project proposed by one of the territories for a community, we will make sure, with our colleagues from HRSDC, that we can integrate the skills development component in the economic development project.
This is really promising. We are teaming up with HRSDC and developing the approach right now. But we are also learning from our partners in the north, who have been doing that for many years now.
:
Now that the interpretation is working, I'll carry on. I was late because I had to speak to a bill in the House.
You're from the Rouyn-Noranda region, so I think you'll be a strong advocate for the North. I'm sure that the reason you were chosen to play such an important role is that you have solid experience.
I am concerned, however. We know what Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions does. We also know what FedNor does. I have a few problems with CanNor. You say that the Agency is also responsible for the northern component of two economic incentive programs [...] the Community Adjustment Fund and the Recreational Infrastructure Canada Program. It is also responsible for the Northern Projects Management Office, which is huge.
We're going to be visiting that part of the country, Iqaluit, on November 24. Is it possible to get an organization chart? It seems to me that CanNor is being added on top of what used to be the Northern Projects Management Office; it's not clear. If I had one think to ask you, it would be this: exactly what role does CanNor play in day-to-day life in Iqaluit and other parts of the North?
:
Thank you very much, Mr. Lemay.
We can certainly give you an organization chart. Once again, it's early days for us. The organization chart will be a provisional one. We are currently working on a business plan that includes the matters we are responsible for and the things we have to deliver, human resources and financial resources. That's the first thing we have to do. The plan will help us a lot and will probably help you, too, understand what it is we do.
Our mandate is to deliver programs that comprise eight components. I believe they're listed in the documentation. That's the first part.
The Projects Management Office, that's something new for the North. It hasn't yet been created. It was announced in September. We think we'll be able to get started in the spring. It will be an office that helps companies that want to submit major projects navigate through all the regulations. It's patterened somewhat after the projects office that exists in the South and is overseen by the Department of Natural Resources. That's our model. Of course, we're going to use a lot of tools, but it has to be adapted to the North.
:
The meetings I've had were at the level of the public service with each territory, as well as with first nations leaders and aboriginal leaders. In Nunavut, of course, it's with NTI, the organization that's responsible for the implementation of the claim.
During the visits we didn't go in depth with respect to what their current priorities are. We wanted to establish a relationship. What we did say is that we.... My opening line is always that “I can't do my job, we can't do our job at CanNor, if you don't work with us. We won't be doing this on our own; we can't possibly. We have to work with you.” And that's very well received.
There are plans for holding consultation meetings and other types of exchanges at quite a high level to start thinking about what our priorities should be. There are priorities that have been articulated for each program. SINED is a very good example, but I think we need to take it one level up.
The other thing I think we need to do is share our capacity. One thing we've agreed to do is to share our basic knowledge about the analysis about the north so that we can see whether or not, hopefully, we're all on the same page. We will put all of those views together and get a better picture of where people are.
:
That's a lot. Thank you very much.
This is a project the department was handling up until the creation of CanNor. It has become a CanNor project. But certainly it is an exciting project, with the possibility of having the Dempster Highway extended all the way to the Arctic Ocean. CanNor is funding some of the feasibility work, the early work. It will require significant infrastructure investment, which will involve other parts of the government when a decision is required. Nicole has taken over that project, and it is a pretty exciting one.
I agree that Radarsat is an important asset that the government has deployed for the north, and it does play an important role in terms of helping us improve our knowledge of the north. I'm not a specialist in this area, but things such as ice conditions, our icebreakers, the scientific teams we send up north depend heavily on Radarsat to be able to assess what is going on there. It is a significant improvement on the technology that existed under Radarsat 1. So it has a lot of benefits.
All kinds of applications are going to be developed over the coming years, including applications that will help Inuit hunters be able to practise traditional skills more safely. So Radarsat, yes, is also part of the vision of the high Arctic research station in terms of being able to do a little bit more scientific work in the north for northerners.
In terms of your studies, I think you've talked a lot about skills development, the tools, the mechanisms, and how they work together to allow aboriginal Canadians, northerners, to be able to participate fully, particularly in the resource economy and the boom that's coming--economic development at large, but the resource sector is going to continue to drive the economy.
There are a lot of good examples out there. Diavik and Ekati have really made some important investments and have helped in those areas. If you talk to aboriginal leaders in the Tlicho area, they'll be able to tell you some interesting stories. More people are going to university. More people are acquiring the skills to be able to be part of the new economy. Nunavut has a huge number of projects that may become active mines soon. We hope there will be a first new mine in Nunavut in the first quarter of 2010.
Again, there's a story there that needs to be told and better understood about how proponents are working with governments, with the agency now, with HRSDC, with the territorial government, and communities to ensure that those jobs are going to go and the skills are going to be gained for the benefit of northerners.
:
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you to the witnesses.
I want to focus on how aboriginal economic development fits into this. In the great Kenora riding we've been having tremendous success within the last year in strengthening the position of first nations communities and providing effective instruments--outside of INAC, but through some of the rounds of funding in Canada's economic action plan--which have served to markedly improve, as compared to previous years, the ability of first nations communities to interact in the private sector. That analysis, and the policies and announcements that have flowed from it, have gone a long way in a very short period of time to bringing the requisite infrastructure requirements and community development pieces together for them, with them.
I see the situation in the north.... My riding extends to the shores of the Hudson Bay, and it's a little bit difficult for me to not think of my riding as anything but the north.
We want to understand--for the benefit of the committee--the aboriginal economic development framework. It was mentioned earlier that we've set new priorities for an aboriginal economic development program that would be pan-national. I was wondering, Patrick, if you could expound on those a little bit. Perhaps then we could hear how these investments could be targeted to first nations in the territories and what strategies you're planning to employ within those two frameworks--if I can call your exciting new program a framework.
:
First of all, it's important to recognize that there's a different relationship involving the federal government and the provinces and reserves in the south and in the north, where you do not have reserves or you only have a small number of reserves. You have self-governing first nations, you have land claim organizations that have signed, and you have the territorial funding formula that funds most of the social programs for the territories. There are some small elements that we are still responsible for, which contribute to social development.
For example, on an annual basis, we do have an agreement with both NWT and Nunavut on a funding position in health services. So it's a supplement to the money they receive in transfers to recognize the fact that their population is in majority aboriginal. That's an example.
We run the food mail program, which subsidizes with nutritious foods that are shipped to the north. This applies not only in the three territories but also in northern parts of the provinces, Nunavik, northern Ontario, etc.
The other example under the northern strategy would be the housing investments that have been made—the minister spoke to those earlier—first under the trust with the territories and now through CMHC, under the recent economic action plan.
Those are some examples. There are other ways that we also contribute to social development. In the north, the primary role is with the territorial governments.
:
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have only one brief comment to make and one question to ask.
[English]
First of all, I just want to make a quick comment to brief you to make sure you're not misled by the minister and are hopefully better briefed on historical economic development. There always have been economic development funds in the north for aboriginal people through special AHRDAs, or through CEIC, Indian Affairs, Industry Canada, or the Aboriginal Capital Corporations. There's a long history of it, so to say that it wasn't there is not true.
But it was good to hear the minister wax eloquent about the success of the SINED program created by Paul Martin.
As for my question, during the set-up of your agency, Dawson City--and you've probably seen this correspondence to the minister--made the very good point that the economies of the rural communities in the north are totally different from the economies of the capital cities. I'm just hoping you will recognize that, and I'm wondering if you have any plans on how you can deal with the specific constraints and opportunities that those rural communities in the north will have, which will be totally different from those of the advanced economies of the capital cities.