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NWT-Alberta agreement up for renewal
Memorandum of understanding more valuable than people realize, says co-chair Miltenberger

Paul Bickford
Northern News Services
Published Monday, December 17, 2012

NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
It may not be high-profile, but a long-running memorandum of understanding between the NWT and Alberta is important, says its co-chair from the GNWT.

"It's more valuable than people realize," said Finance Minister Michael Miltenberger, who co-chairs the NWT-Alberta Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Co-operation and Development.

The MOU, which is due for renewal in 2013, gives both jurisdictions the opportunity to discuss cross-boundary issues and their impacts.

Miltenberger, who is also the minister of Environment and Natural Resources, met the Alberta co-chair of the MOU in Yellowknife on Nov. 26 to discuss the environment, economy, energy, transportation, advanced education and employment, and labour attraction and retention in the North.

The Alberta co-chair is Stephen Khan, the minister of Enterprise and Advanced Education.

This was the first annual meeting of the MOU since Khan took on the role of co-chair for Alberta earlier this year.

Miltenberger said last month's meeting partly dealt with the upcoming renewal.

The MOU was first agreed to in 1998 and has been renewed every five years since then.

"Our officials are going to strike a working group together and they're going to look at the agreement. It's going back now to the last century," Miltenberger said, noting wording may need to be added, deleted, adjusted or enhanced. "So we're going to look at all those things and have that all sorted out in time for it to be renewed this coming fall 2013."

The minister said there are an "enormous number" of issues for the NWT and Alberta to discuss under the MOU.

"When you think about it, it's the only common table that we have with Alberta at the political level that allows us to sit down and talk about our overall broad relationship issues, and sometimes identify some program areas that may need clarifying by various departments," he said, listing such things as energy, water, the environment, boreal caribou, diseased bison and the economy. "This gives us an opportunity at the political level with senior staff to have a general discussion, highlight areas that might need follow-up, and just keep nurturing and working on our relationship with each other."

Miltenberger noted the populations of the NWT and Alberta have much in common, particularly along their shared border, and may even share infrastructure or services such as health care.

In a news release, Khan said the Alberta government is committed to continuing the work that has come from the relationship with the NWT.

"This collaboration strengthens our ability to work more efficiently together and enables both jurisdictions to seize shared opportunities, such as market expansion for energy," said the provincial minister.

Miltenberger said the MOU has helped weave a very strong relationship with Alberta over the years by building on cultural, economic and geographic connections.

"This is one of the ways to nurture and sustain that relationship," he said.

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