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Mr. Speaker, earlier this month, the 20th Legislative Assembly affirmed its commitment to building a strong economic foundation. 

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Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to revitalizing the Great Slave Lake commercial fishery.

The Northwest Territories has a long history of commercial fishing. From the 1950s to the 1990s, production varied between 750,000 and 2 million kilograms per year. But in the last twenty years, production has declined due to several factors that reduced fishers’ incomes while the cost of fishing went up.

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Mr. Speaker, last month I attended AME Roundup in Vancouver, where I had the privilege of representing Northwest Territories residents and advocating for their interests in the realm of resource development.

Roundup showcases the NWT’s resource potential to the world’s mineral development community. In recent years, we have seen growth in the exploration of key commodities, especially for critical minerals like lithium. This exploration presents the NWT with a unique and timely opportunity to increase investment in our mineral sector.

The below is being redistributed on behalf of The Government of the Northwest Territories and Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor).

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is launching the Artist to Market Program (AMP) to create economic opportunities for NWT artists to showcase their talents and sell their work outside of the territory. 

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Mr. Speaker, the regulations for the Northwest Territories Mineral Resources Act define the first made-in-the-NWT approach to governing mineral development. That is not the only thing that makes them historic, they are the first legal instrument to be developed in their entirety, under the Legislative Development Protocol set out by the Northwest Territories Intergovernmental Agreement on Lands and Resources Management. Last Friday, I tabled a report highlighting the status and success of the Intergovernmental Council’s collaborative process.

The Government of the Northwest Territories’ (GNWT) new Commercial Fishery Support Pilot Program (CFSP) is now accepting applications. This funding program is part of the GNWT’s ongoing strategy to support Northwest Territories (NWT) fishers and to revitalize the territory’s commercial fishery by helping to defer costs, supplement prices, and encourage recruitment and innovation.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) has made changes to the Business Stream of the Northwest Territories Nominee Program to decrease the eligible investment amount and to make it easier for applicants to start a business in the territory and secure permanent residence in Canada.

Effective as of August 2, 2023, the investment amounts needed to join the program have decreased.

The fire ban in effect at the McKinnon Territorial Park in Norman Wells has been lifted. 

NWT Parks reminds park users that campfires should only be lit in designated fire pits and must always be kept under control.  Keep a bucket of water, sand and a shovel handy.  Be sure to extinguish your fire before you go to sleep or when you leave the site. Remember that if your fire is too hot to touch, it is too hot to leave.

Today, the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is announcing funding for residents who self-evacuated by road and for small businesses affected by evacuation orders in the territory.

The Evacuation Travel Support Program is available to NWT residents who, by order, evacuated their home community because of the 2023 wildfires. Eligible individuals who evacuated by vehicle will be provided with a one-time direct deposit as follows: