NNSL (May 25/98) - NWT Chief Electoral Officer David Hamilton opened the Elections NWT office in Nunavut last week.

Hamilton also chose the opportunity to announce the appointment of Joshie Teemotee Mitsima as Nunavut's Deputy Chief Electoral Officer.

It is expected that Nunavut will have a total of 19 electoral districts and that Canada's newest territory will be enumerated in October of this year. The election day is tentatively scheduled for February 1999, allowing the members of the first legislative assembly of Nunavut to take office for a five-year term on April 1.

All dates will become official when amendments to the Nunavut Act are approved by Parliament.

Economic development

Jose Kusugak of NTI has asked the federal government to help support economic development in Nunavut. In a meeting in Iqaluit last week, Kusugak presented NTI's concerns about economic growth to the House of Commons aboriginal affairs and northern development committee.

While NTI plans to play a key role in establishing the economic policies, Kusugak said access to equity, high transportation costs, the distance to various marketplaces, inferior technology, the need for a skilled labor force, a short shipping season and issues coming out of division all contribute to difficulties in setting up a self-sufficient economy.

Kusugak said an improved Inuit economy would help re-develop Inuit sufficiency.

"The concept of self-reliance has been totally taken away from our people. We're trying to turn this around. Before the government came, we'd either be self-sufficient or die, starve. The government did a really nice job of taking this away," he said.

The committee travelled to several Northern communities last week and is expected to submit recommendations to Parliament later this year.

Busy, busy, busy

It seems that Nunavut's deputy ministers are always on the go these days. After spending a few days in the capital earlier this month discussing the logistics of division, the team -- with the assistant deputy ministers - headed off to Pond Inlet last week to hold regional planning sessions.

The focus of the two-day meeting was a discussion of the role of staff in various government departments and a report on the meetings with the GNWT deputy ministers held in Iqaluit last week. The group was also to plan July's leadership meeting and spend some time meeting with the residents of Pond Inlet.

New health facilities

Residents of Iqaluit, Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay could have new health facilities if everything goes according to plan. During a meeting in Cambridge Bay last week, the GNWT, three Nunavut health and social services boards and two regional birthright corporations signed a preliminary agreement to build health centres in the three communities.

"We are taking an innovative approach to building these facilities in partnership with the health and social services boards and the birthright corporations," said Ng.

Final approval for entering into the agreements depends on Interim Commissioner Jack Anawak, who has agreed to the proposal in principle.