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Good morning.
It’s a pleasure to be here today for the ninth Project Management Conference.
I am excited to be taking part of this conference this year in a different capacity than I have in previous years. In the past, I have been a moderator or participant, but this year I get to be here as the new Minister of the Department of Infrastructure.
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Good morning and thank you for having me here today to mark the opening of the 2019 annual meeting of the Canadian Marine Advisory Council. Before I begin, I’d like to thank a few people.
The Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to providing culturally appropriate, responsive and efficient corrections services in partnership with our communities. Today, the Minister of Justice, Louis Sebert, and the Minister of Infrastructure, Wally Schumann, celebrated the opening of the new corrections unit for women with the people of Fort Smith.
This new unit was designed with the current and future needs of female offenders in mind and will support culturally appropriate programs and activities.
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Good afternoon.
I am pleased to be here today for the official groundbreaking ceremony for the Tłı̨chǫ All-Season Road.
Before I begin, I would like to take a moment to thank and welcome our special guests:
The official groundbreaking ceremony was held today in Whatì, Northwest Territories for the Tłı̨chǫ All-Season Road (TASR) – a new 97-kilometre all-season road to Whatì from Highway 3 west of Behchokǫ̀.
Currently, Whatì is a fly-in community except for the months it is accessible by winter road.
Mr. Speaker, at the beginning of the 18th Legislative Assembly, our government committed to explore options for renewable and alternative energy sources and to improve our energy conservation efforts. The 2030 Energy Strategy was released in 2018 to provide a long-term vision for energy use and supply in the Northwest Territories and we began implementing the six strategic objectives outlined in the Energy Strategy last year, through initiatives detailed in a three-year Energy Action Plan.
Mr. Speaker, early in the life of the 18th Legislative Assembly, our government made a commitment to secure funding for the advancement of new strategic infrastructure corridors. It is a commitment we made in Connecting Us, the Northwest Territories 25-year Transportation Strategy, as well as in our government’s mandate.
Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories is following through on our mandate commitment to strengthen connections with our public and private sector partners in transportation infrastructure.
Marine transportation is an essential lifeline for residents and businesses in many small communities of the Northwest Territories. Communities on Great Slave Lake, the Mackenzie River, and the Western Arctic coast rely on tugboats and barges for the resupply of essential goods and fuel.
Minister of Infrastructure Wally Schumann welcomed the announcement of new federal funding to advance the development of the Slave Geological Province (SGP) Corridor.
The project will receive a total of $40 million to support environmental regulatory reviews and planning studies. Transport Canada will contribute $30 million under the National Trade Corridors Fund (NTCF) and the Government of the Northwest Territories will contribute $10 million.
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Good morning. I am pleased to be here this morning to take part in this official announcement. I would like to thank MP McLeod and all guests for joining us.
MP McLeod continues to support our infrastructure initiatives and recognizes that these types of projects are investments in the future of the north. For that and his continued support, we are grateful and pleased that you are able to join us this morning.
