New sport funding deal for NWT
Federal and territorial governments announce three-year agreement
James McCarthy
Northern News Services
Published Friday, April 18, 2014
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
It's always said sports and recreation are important to the development of a child and, at least for the next couple years, the federal and territorial governments are putting some money where their mouths are on that subject.
A new three-year deal was announced earlier this week by Bal Gosal, the federal minister of state for sport, and Robert C. McLeod, the minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, which will see more than $1.8 million put toward sport development and participation in the NWT through a 50/50 split.
McLeod said there wasn't a lot of negotiations to get the deal done and the money has actually been flowing already.
"We did plan on announcing it last year in Fort Providence but (Gosal) had to opt out at the last minute," he said. "This was the best time when we could get together and actually announce it."
More than $500,000 was spent in 2012-2013, and that amount will increase to more than $860,000 for 2013-2014. The cash will be put toward three priority areas under the Canadian Sport Policy's Introduction to Sport objective: supporting introduction-to-sport programming, with a focus on under-represented populations, working with aboriginal communities to identify priorities for aboriginal sport development and supporting Canadian Sport For Life.
"A lot of our young people are simply inactive," said McLeod. "That can be attributed to playing video games or being on the computer from after school onward. We decided the after-school time would be a good place to try and get some of that programming going and give them another option besides playing video games."
Sounds good but, in some cases, it's easier said than done.
That's where sport partners come in, such as the Aboriginal Sports Circle of the NWT, territorial sport organizations and after-school clubs within in the city, places where grassroots programs can be found.
"The Sports Circle is a good example," said McLeod. "They do a lot of community-based programming and clinics and getting kids involved and active."
The Sports Circle receives approximately $100,000 each year from this agreement and it's used mainly for the promotion of traditional games and the annual Traditional Games Championships, which are held in Yellowknife each year.
Greg Hopf, the Sports Circle's executive director, said the money has done wonders for his organization, especially in Yellowknife, when it comes to the championships.
"The first year we held it (2013), there was just one team from Yellowknife, that being William McDonald," he said. "This year, we had four teams from Yellowknife - William McDonald, Mildred Hall, St. Joe's and Range Lake North. That's because of the support we get from both governments."
When it comes to introduction to sport, McLeod said that's probably most important because it provides the building blocks for kids to look at the bigger picture, such as Team NWT.
"With the programs we have in communities, they get to try out for Team NWT," he said. "If they make Team NWT, they go away to the Arctic Winter Games or the Canada Games and they come back and they rave about the experience. They're excited about it and they end up trying to get more kids out and active, so it's a trickle-down effect."
