Northwest Territories business leaders and the Government of the Northwest Territories are working together to safeguard the territory’s economy from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic while maintaining a protective public health response.

As the GNWT prepared for the inevitable arrival of COVID-19, the swift mobilization of its pandemic services limited the number of cases, and prevented loss-of-life.

Today, the territory is in a position to look forward while others are tightening up in part because of these measures.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is pleased to share the results of the 2020 Northwest Territories (NWT) Environmental Audit, released today.

Every five years, an independent auditor is appointed to conduct an Environmental Audit, as required under legislation and land claim agreements. The Audit is a way to assess how well the NWT environmental regulatory system is working and provide recommendations to help guide decision-makers, not just the GNWT.

Today the Department of Education, Culture and Employment announced the official launch of the Our Languages JK-12 Indigenous languages curriculum. 

Our Languages is a competency-based curriculum that provides Indigenous language instructors with curricular outcomes, instructional strategies, and assessment tools to foster language growth in classrooms. It promotes a whole-school approach to language learning to ensure that Indigenous languages are heard and spoken throughout schools, at assemblies, and during routines and in all Northwest Territories classrooms.

Today the Government of the Northwest Territories released the Aurora College Transformation Implementation Plan (Implementation Plan) and the initial areas of teaching and research specialization for the polytechnic university.  The Implementation Plan outlines the path towards the establishment of a polytechnic university that will support the aspirations of Northerners, diversify the economy, and contribute to the long-term prosperity of the Northwest Territories.

Julie Green, Minister of Health and Social Services announced the 2020 recipients for the $1 million Anti-Poverty Fund. The Fund helps support eligible organizations in their efforts to reduce poverty. The Anti-Poverty Advisory Committee, an external cross sector group, reviewed applications and made recommendations to the Minister for approval. This year, twenty eight grants  were awarded to community, Indigenous and non-profit organizations.

The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is pleased to announce the continuation of supports for the NWT’s most vulnerable residents in obtaining general identification cards (GIC).

In 2017, the Departments of Education, Culture and Employment (ECE) and Infrastructure (INF) partnered on a two-year pilot project to help Income Assistance (IA) applicants obtain GICs by waiving fees for approved IA applicants. 

Minister of Finance, Caroline Wawzonek, today released a ‘What We Heard Report’ that summarizes the feedback received from participants in the July 2020 Budget Dialogues.

A new funding initiative will enable commercial agriculture producers in the Northwest Territories to make larger investments in their operations.

Proposals are being accepted from NWT-based producers, processors, retailers and organizations for investments in excess of $100,000 to a maximum of $200,000. 

To be eligible, projects will need to address at least one of the following outcomes:

•                     Increase competitiveness, productivity or profitability;

•                     Increase environmental sustainability;

The Minister of Health and Social Services, Julie Green, tabled the 2019-2020 Annual Report of the Director of Child and Family Services today in the Legislative Assembly. The annual report allows the Department to examine the system and find ways to evolve our service to better meet the needs of children, youth and families in the NWT.  The Department uses this data report as an opportunity to provide insight on the experience and outcomes of children and youth supported by child and family services. 

The Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment has released a comparison of the NWT’s mining regime against 21 Canadian and international jurisdictions.

The PricewaterhouseCoopers report Tax and royalty benchmark - Mining in the Northwest Territories marks the first post-Devolution review of the Northwest Territories (NWT) tax and royalty system and provides an up-to-date reference point on its ranking.

It highlights where the NWT’s industry is positioned in comparison to a decade ago.