Premier Cochrane and Minister Nokleby issued the following joint statement on working in partnership with Members of the Legislative Assembly on behalf of all residents of the Northwest Territories:

“The 19^th Legislative Assembly is still a new government, with many new Members. It takes time for people to learn to work together effectively in new roles, and all Members of the Legislative Assembly were still in the process of figuring that out when COVID-19 hit.

Mr. Speaker, businesses across the Northwest Territories have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but perhaps none more so than our tourism sector.

The tourism sector was one of the first hit by the pandemic and will likely be amongst the last to recover from its effects.

Northwest Territories tourism is reliant on national and international travel however for the time being our borders must remain closed to protect the health of our residents and our small and remote communities. 

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is accepting funding proposals from professional artists in the Northwest Territories (NWT) recovering from the impacts of COVID-19.

Up to $3,000 is available to NWT artists or commercial film and media arts producers with lost revenues or whose activities are restricted due to physical distancing requirements.

The Office of the Chief Public Health Officer continues to recommend residents use re-usable cloth or disposable face coverings when in public places. Materials available from home can be used to create effective, do-it-yourself face coverings.

Access to these non-medical facemasks in all regions will be important as Northwest Territories (NWT) businesses begin to resume operations and we take steps to recover our economy.

The Department of Industry Tourism and Investment wants to know where NWT residents can purchase cotton facemasks in their communities.

The Government of the Northwest Territories’  Support for Entrepreneurs and Economic Development (SEED) program, led by the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment (ITI), is open for applications.

The Department of ITI has developed a program guideline for 2020-21 focused on keeping investment within our communities and supporting local employment. It will work to prioritize applications from NWT businesses whose proposals focus on economic recovery.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) understands the physical distancing and isolation measures used to combat the spread of COVID-19 have created new and very real economic stress on Northwest Territories (NWT) residents, families, businesses, Indigenous governments and communities. To ease some of the burden, Shane Thompson, Minister of Lands announced the Department intends to waive rent on existing surface dispositions on public land, for the fiscal year 2020-21.

Minister Katrina Nokleby issued the following media statement today in support of the Northwest Territories Chamber of Commerce and its advocacy on behalf of NWT businesses. 

“The Northwest Territories (NWT) Chamber of Commerce’s recent letter to the Federal government was valuable in re-enforcing what has already been said by the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) and other NWT sectors about the unique needs of the Northwest Territories during these unprecedented times.

Check against delivery 

Hello everyone and thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today.

I’d like to specifically thank Jenni for the invitation to address your membership.  This is the first chance that I have had to do so since being elected, and though I wish we could have done it in person, I am glad all the same.

Outside of the immediate task of navigating the COVID-19 crisis, the Government of the Northwest Territories’ broad mandate is to improve the lives of the people it serves.

The Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment (ITI) is contributing $86,000 to Northwest Territories (NWT) Community Futures Development Corporations (CFDC)  to allow them to defer loan payments for their clients in the same way that the Business Development and Investment Corporation has done.

The one-time contribution by the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) will cover the interest costs that would otherwise be incurred by these organizations.

The Government of the Northwest Territories advises that demolition of the former Northern Frontier Visitors Centre is underway in Yellowknife.

The facility closed to the public in 2017 due to deterioration. Work is ongoing to determine future use of this important property.

For everyone’s health and safety, fencing has been added around the property and only authorized workers can enter.

Demolition schedule:

April 16-28: Selective interior demolition and salvage.

April 29-May 3: Building demolition.