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Good afternoon to all of you here today and thank you for the invitation to speak to you on the last day of this conference.
We have a world of opportunity within our grasp – now, more than ever, is the time to pave the way to that opportunity, or the “Pathway to Prosperity” as this event is so aptly themed.
We have had an opportunity, this week, to hear from many people – respected Aboriginal leaders, community role models and people from various levels of government. We have also had the opportunity to learn from an academic perspective, and the case studies you have shared with this group are a valuable way for us to learn from each other and give us important things to consider when working together to move our economy forward.
How appropriate it is to have a conference about governance and the economy in the north.
Here – more than anywhere else – they must be considered together. Especially so, in light of our overwhelming resource potential, and ongoing land claim and self-government processes. Here, where the authority to make decisions about the way public lands and resource revenues are managed is still beyond our grasp.
When considering governance and the economy, a host of questions comes to mind:
- What resources do we develop, and how do we ensure they are developed sustainably?
- How do we continue to have a healthy economy after diamonds?
- What dollar value do we give our traditional lands and harvesting, and how does it compare to the pay cheque that comes with a wage economy?
- How do we consider everyone’s input to reach a consensus that will be mutually beneficial? And is there a middle ground that can be found?
- How do we find the best ways to work together to devolve decision making from the federal government?
- What long-term objectives do we have for our economy, our people and our future?
These are tough questions that will require tough decisions – decisions that we need to make in order to fully realize our true economic potential.
Sound governance will be the key to making all of these decisions. But government and the GNWT is only one element of this evolution. We need only to look around this room to see all of the different players that must contribute to the sound governance of our Territory. By definition, good governance is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive, and follows the rule of law.
That is why it’s so important that all of you are here today - representing such a broad range of interests and providing feedback and input on where we are going and how we can get there.
We have heard that the first lesson in sound governance is to know your objective – what do we want to achieve and how can we achieve it? As the GNWT Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, I can tell you that the same is true of the economy.
So what is the vision or the goal that guides our investment, our capacity building and our agenda for economic development? Knowing that will guide and focus our decision making – and in turn – provide a context in which to evaluate these decisions.
The overarching vision of the 17th Legislative Assembly is to have strong individuals, families and communities sharing the benefits and responsibilities of a unified, environmentally sustainable and prosperous territory.
In terms of the economy, we have set the goal: to establish a diversified economy that provides all communities and regions with opportunities and choices.
We have set about to do this – in part – by working with our partners to ensure responsible stewardship through our land and resource management regime, by making sound strategic infrastructure investments and by supporting the growth of businesses and industries that will work to diversify our economy.
That is why we are leading the development of an Economic Development Strategy. A sustainable economic development strategy will give us the opportunity to keep pace with the incredible growth potential that our territory has, to ensure we are positioned to guide and manage this investment and growth, and to use it to build capacity in our communities and self-sufficiency in our people.
This strategy is an investment in our economy as much as it is an investment in diversification. Yes, we have a wealth of resource potential, but we also need to expand our tourism sector, explore additional opportunities for small businesses and consider how traditional activities such as hunting and trapping contribute to our economy.
Care will be taken to ensure the strategy is responsive to changing economic circumstances in the territory, creates an increased awareness of business opportunities in all regions of the NWT, and recognizes the need to maintain sustainable development best practices.
It will also take into account that some communities in the NWT live and prefer a traditional lifestyle. For these communities, the focus of the strategy will be on self-sufficiency, such as finding ways to reduce imports – mainly fuel, increase local food production and to maintain and improve local housing and other community services.
We recognize, also that while we have a wealth of resources, our economy is often dependent on market forces beyond our control and vulnerable to boom and bust cycles. With this in mind, we are also working to expand the nature and scope of our resource development with a Mineral Development Strategy.
Mineral exploration and development has driven our economy and presented us with unprecedented opportunities for investment, employment and business development. This has been especially true for our northern Aboriginal community.
In fact, the mineral development sector employs hundreds of NWT residents and results in more than half a billion dollars in annual purchases from NWT businesses.
A mineral development strategy will guide decision-making for mineral development in the future. It will provide a framework to ensure our mineral resources continue to be developed in a way that benefits NWT residents, ensures development is sustainable, and upholds our commitment to protect the environment.
We must find the right balance – between industries – as well as between our need for development and our protection of the environment in which we live.
Our approach so far has been to maximize the benefits of our resource development by building business capacity in our communities, corporations and businesses, and investing in the education and skill development of our youth who will eventually empower and guide its growth. We have had success in these areas, but we need a long-term plan.
A long term plan for mineral development will demonstrate certainty and stability during this time of devolution negotiations and transition and serve to increase industry confidence and exploration expenditures in our region. We only need to look at the activity going on in the Sahtu region to get an idea of what happens when development occurs. Employment is at an all-time high and businesses are seeing their highest profits in years as a result of industry exploration and local spending.
This initiative complements our work on a comprehensive Economic Development Strategy. And, like the work we are completing on that project, the development of this strategy will be a collaborative effort.
For both strategies, we will work closely with our partners and incorporate input from Aboriginal governments, communities, industry, small businesses, the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines, the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, the Northern Aboriginal Business Association, the NWT Chamber of Commerce, the NWT Association of Communities, and NWT residents to ensure their long-term success. This extensive engagement process will ensure that all voices are heard and that these strategies can work as a guide for all regions across the territory.
Many of you here today will be actively involved in the development of these strategies to ensure they are balanced and responsive to the needs of the people we serve.
We also know that infrastructure is essential for economic development – infrastructure to support economic growth, infrastructure to prepare for natural resource development, and infrastructure to connect our communities and increase access to essential goods and services. The Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to improving the lives of NWT residents through strategic infrastructure investments. I would like to provide you with some details on a few strategic infrastructure projects underway aimed at achieving this territory’s full potential.
As I said at the opening of the new Colville Lake airport earlier this week, economic opportunities accompany infrastructure development. Investing in infrastructure stimulates job creation and makes our economy more competitive in the long term.
As we speak here today, the finishing touches are being put on the Deh Cho Bridge. This will be the largest piece of transportation infrastructure in the NWT. The historic opening will herald a new era of all-season access connecting the economic potential on both sides of the river.
Another key piece of infrastructure is the proposed Mackenzie highway. Premier McLeod mentioned this during his address at the beginning of this conference, but its importance cannot be overstated. Once constructed, the Mackenzie Valley Highway will run all the way from Alberta to Tuktoyaktuk, and will be the first all-weather road to the Arctic Ocean. The Mackenzie Valley all-weather highway project will enable our territory to grow stronger and become more self-sustaining.
The highway will strengthen connections between our communities, significantly reduce the cost of doing business in the Mackenzie Valley, and increase the opportunities for resource development in our Territory. It will facilitate other strategic infrastructure projects, such as the Mackenzie Gas Pipeline and the installation of a fibre optic cable, which will share a common corridor with the highway’s proposed alignment. Residents along the highway route will experience better access to essential services, increased mobility, a lower cost of living and increased economic development opportunities.
In a similar vein, Investments in the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk highway will help to support sustainable development in the region, including oil and gas, and mining projects. The Inuvik-Tuk highway points to a future in which our residents can expect to reap the benefits of increased development in currently remote regions, supported by reliable, year-round road access.
No wonder it is characterized by the federal government as a “project of national significance”, and important to the country’s position on security, sovereignty, and economic development.
In addition to these infrastructure investments, we are also investing in energy improvements that will provide lower-cost, and environmentally friendly, power to our residents and our businesses - lowering the cost of living for our residents and making investment in the Northwest Territories more feasible and more attractive.
This is the thinking behind what we as a government are doing to strengthen and diversify our economy – and to promote sustainable economic growth in our communities and across the territory.
We all have respective responsibilities to help build the economic capacity of our Territory and its people. If we acknowledge that improving the quality of decision making is essential for economic development, then developing governance of this scope and significance will be a true test of our collective abilities to continue to provide the leadership our territory needs.
None of us can do it alone. Instead we need to apply this common economic objective and uncover our respective roles in governance. This includes the federal government, Aboriginal governments, the Government of the Northwest Territories, industry and nongovernmental organizations.
The North needs development. Our social reality dictates that we need to provide an economy on which to establish a vibrant and sustainable north. And, obviously, this development must be governed by the people of the NWT. As much as we recognize zero development is not an option, zero northern control is not an option either.
Premier Bob McLeod’s words on devolution really ring true. Only when issues affecting Northwest Territories residents are decided and dealt with in the territory, can the people of the NWT have a greater say in the decisions required to move development forward. As I noted at the Sahtu exploration readiness session a few weeks ago – and using the words of my colleague, Mr. Norman Yakeleya – the best way to guide our future is to be at the table.
I hope this conference has given us an understanding, an opportunity, and the motivation to further develop a governance structure where we all have respective yet complementary roles to play.
Working together, I’m confident that we will unlock the immense potential of our territory and clear the path to prosperity.
Thank you.