Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services
Iqaluit (Jun 11/01) - The Nunavut government is winning accolades for its public service initiatives.
Victor Tootoo, assistant deputy minister of finance and Human Resources Deputy Minister David Omilgoitok, helped Nunavut win the gold medal for innovations in public service.
The award was presented last month in Toronto during the annual meeting of the Institute of Public Administration of Canada. Nunavut tied Alberta, topping 100 other nominees.
Tootoo said the award meant the rest of Canada recognized the innovative work done in the new territory.
"It's nice to see the country finally giving us recognition for what we're doing here," said Tootoo.
In their presentation, the pair spoke about decentralization, the Inuit employment plan, Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and Nunavut's information technology systems.
"It's a recognition of the contribution the public service is making to Nunavut, that we are trying to do things differently," said Omilgoitok.
Once fully staffed, 2,700 people will work in the public service. The government has currently hired roughly 79 per cent of its workforce.
