Inuvik (Feb 25/05) - Ingamo Hall's youth program has been hit unexpectedly by a major funding cut.

The friendship centre received the bad news in a Feb. 3 letter from Roy Courtoreille, chair of the Regional Proposal Review Committee for the Northwest Territories/Nunavut Council of Friendship Centres.

The letter stated Ingamo Hall's funding request for its Youth Leadership Development Program had been declined.

Friendship Centre president Barry Greenland vowed to challenge the decision.

"We're going to battle this one out," Greenland said.

Four years of funding

For the past four years, Ingamo's youth program has received $155,000 from Heritage Canada, which is administered through the NWT and Nunavut council of friendship centres, based in Hay River.

According to Greenland, decisions on funding friendship centre youth programs in the two territories are made by a council of youth delegates each December.

He said the youth council recommendation is usually "rubber stamped" by the NT/NU Council of Friendship Centre's regional proposal review committee in January.Word on the funding is usually received in December or early January, Greenland said.

"Our youth rep advised us that we were approved and we're charging that there was interference from the directors at the review committee," he said.

"They can't go ahead and say the youth are making the decisions and turn around and change their minds."

Kristin MacDonald, the youth representative from Ingamo who attended the December 2004 meeting, said Ingamo Hall's Youth Leadership Development Program received a more than adequate rating from the delegates.

"You have to get a 90 (out of 100) or better to be approved and we had a 97," she said.

The letter from Courtoreille says Ingamo's funding application was declined because the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation receives money from the same program, although IRC's funding comes directly from Heritage Canada.

Lucy Kuptana, director of finance and administration for the IRC's Community Development Division says it received $146,000 for 2005-2006 and will split the money between its youth centres in Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk. IRC has received the funding for the past 10 years.

"There's never been a conflict before and the funding (to both the IRC and Ingamo Hall) enhanced each other's programs," she said.

"I felt so bad for (Ingamo Hall) when I heard the news."

Inuvik Drum was unsuccessful in contacting a spokesperson from the friendship centre council for comment by deadline.

Without the funding, Ingamo Hall's youth programming plans for the coming year are up in the air.

The funding supported three staff and served the needs of 177 youth in the community.