NWT
After more than 80 meetings and forums, the Economic Opportunities Strategy Advisory Panel released 90 recommendations to a committee which will now form a draft economic policy for the territory.
The NWT Economic Opportunities Advisory Panel released a report May 30 that summarizes public opinion on what priorities the government should pursue when it comes to the future of the Northern economy. Here, board member Roy Campbell, left, Industry, Tourism and Investment Minister David Ramsay, board chair and former premier Joe Handley, and former NWT Chamber of Commerce president Hughie Graham answer questions from the media at the legislative assembly. - Laura Busch/NNSL photo
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The most common theme raised by the public was the need for more focus on training Northern people for Northern jobs, instead of flying in workers from the south, said panel chair Joe Handley during a press conference at the legislative assembly May 30.
"There are too many Northern people without jobs and too many Northern jobs without Northern people (filling them)," he said, adding NWT companies spend an estimated $300 million per year flying workers in from the south.
The panel consisted of former premier Handley, former Yellowknife mayor Gord Van Tighem, NWT business owner Heather Bourassa, and former Alberta politician Rory Campbell.
From the suggestions, worries, and observations they heard over the winter months, the panel compiled 90 recommendations to inform a draft economic strategy, which was tabled at the legislative assembly on May 30.
"When I was premier, there was a lot of excitement about potential oil and gas. The diamond mines were producing, people were very optimistic about big industry," said Handley. "Now there is more focus on economic opportunities around communities."
The opportunities include commercial fishing, forestry, and tourism operations, he said.
These opportunities, the report explains, will utilize more Northern-made products to meet demand, bringing cost of living down and generating more employment options for Northerners.
An example used in the report is commercial fishing. The NWT currently harvests 20 per cent of the quota in Great Slave Lake but fish sold in stores or served in government institutions are from outside the territory, due to the NWT's limited capacity.
Supporting local fish and meat processing and commercial harvesting initiatives could allow fishers and hunters to support themselves and put affordable local food on store shelves.
Discussion of capacity also includes getting the NWT population to stop decreasing and start increasing.
"We heard a lot about Northerners without jobs and jobs without Northerners," said Handley, and the same phrase pops up throughout the panel's report.
Handley said the themes were common throughout the territory and the collaborative, not competitive, attitude between regions means it likely won't be hard to get everyone on board once the economic strategy comes out.
The draft economic policy will now be developed by the governance committee, which includes the Aboriginal Business Association, the NWT Chamber of Commerce, the NWT Association of Communities, the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, and the GNWT. The committee will be led by the GNWT Department of Industry, Tourism, and Investment.
- with files from Laura Busch
