Yellowknife (May 10/04) - The territorial government has caved in to demands from educators and MLAs who were angered after a children's aboriginal language program was scrapped earlier this year.

Education, Culture and Employment Minister Charles Dent and Range Lake MLA Sandy Lee, chair of the standing committee on social programs, held a news conference, Tuesday, to announce that $877,000 has been found to restore the two-year-old "language nest" program.

The program was launched in 2002 for children from infancy to five years of age in hopes of revitalizing aboriginal languages in the NWT. The program was shelved last March after the territorial government chose not to continue funding it.

"It's primary function is to make sure that young people are comfortable in their own language and heritage," said Dent.

"Because knowing oneself is important to being able to be successful."

The renewed funding will go towards 15 already existing language nests in Lutsel K'e, Fort Resolution, Fort Smith, Dettah, Wha Ti, Fort McPherson, Inuvik, Paulatuk, Tuktoyaktuk, Aklavik, Holman, Tulita, Deline, Hay River Reserve, Fort Providence and Fort Simpson.

The idea for the program came from New Zealand's attempts to save the Maori language of the aborigines living there. The program involves bringing elders into pre-schools and day care-type settings to instruct toddlers in their language.

Money woes

Dent blamed budget constraints for the government's earlier decision not to renew the program, although this latest block of funding isn't coming from any new source of money.

"We don't actually have the money approved yet," said Dent.

"We'll actually be increasing the deficit, but cabinet discussed this issue and decided that early childhood programs were an important enough investment in the future of our children that we had to look at deficit financing in this case."

Cate Sills, executive director of the NWT Literacy Council, said she is pleased that the government changed its mind.

"This is an important part of literacy," said Sills. "The beauty of language nests are that it links children, parents and elders to work to together to develop the language. It's about supporting language development in the community and in the home."