Thank you.
Good afternoon. It's with great pleasure that I take this opportunity to speak to you, the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. Thanks for allowing me this time. Good afternoon also to my fellow representatives from the north.
As you mentioned, I am Terry Hayden, the acting deputy minister of the Department of Economic Development. I'm appearing this afternoon on behalf of the Honourable Currie Dixon, Minister of Economic Development. With me today is Mr. Stephen Rose, the director of policy, planning and research for the Department of Economic Development.
The Government of Yukon believes that developing our northern regional economies is an effective way for Canada to promote its Arctic foreign policy abroad. Canada’s north has entered a new era. We are experiencing massive social, political, environmental, and economic change, and with that change comes the opportunity for benefits that reach beyond our northern borders. We are increasingly making decisions that will shape the evolution of the territories in years ahead and create benefits that we can share with all Canadians.
We are mature, responsible governments and believe that our northern institutions—federal, territorial, aboriginal, and municipal—work in partnerships with one another. We see a north where these governments have the fiscal capacity to govern and respond effectively to those we serve.
I would like to begin with Yukon’s economic strengths and challenges and Yukon’s position with respect to the Government of Canada’s Arctic foreign policy.
Yukon’s economy remains strong with a commitment by the Government of Yukon to stimulate and diversify the private sector economy. In addition to natural resource development, Yukon is focused on a number of strategic industries including film and sound, research and development, information and communication technologies, tourism, arts and culture, agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, oil and gas, and of course small business development.
To that end it is important that investment is made in infrastructure to create and support immediate stimulus and long-term economic growth. Some of these investments should include building sustainable infrastructure for Yukon communities including water and sewer systems, enhancing our major highways to support the economic future of Yukon’s natural resources, and examining the potential for a secondary fibre optic link to the south for enhanced connectivity.
To support Yukon’s natural resource development, the Yukon government supports a number of incentive programs. These programs, combined with current geoscience databases and a single regulatory process, have made Yukon a worldwide competitor in investment for the mining sector.
Yukon understands that financing and equity investment from major private sector initiatives will have to come from outside partners, whether from B.C., Alberta, the U.S., the EU, or Asia. Yukon has a strategy of improving the investment climate for responsible development and for pursuing investment attraction from a variety of areas. We already have some substantial capital investment from Chinese companies, and we continue to build our relationship with the Asian region. Yukon’s reputation is growing internationally, and we continue to spread the message that Yukon and Canada's north is open for business.
The Government of Yukon places great importance on partnerships with Yukon first nations. We are committed to strengthening and sustaining positive relationships with all Yukon first nations governments, their citizens, and the communities they represent. We believe that it is vital to engage first nations in the development of the north. To date, eleven of the Yukon’s fourteen first nations have self-governing agreements in place, and some have already taken advantage of investment opportunities in the various industry sectors in Yukon.
Community participation is critical to ensure that sustainable development can occur with supportive local involvement. Capacity development is a priority for many first nations, and the Government of Yukon continues to work with first nation governments and their respective agents in key areas of capacity development to further participation in the economy.
The Yukon was very pleased when the Government of Canada recognized that Canada’s north is a fundamental part of our nation, part of our heritage, our future, and our identity as a country. To Yukon this means that Canada sees and understands the enormous economic potential in Canada’s north and is committed to investing further in the resources and the people of the north. Yukon believes that while the economic development needs of Canada’s northern regions have similarities, the geographical, political, and economic realities in each of the territories make for very unique and specific situations that should not be ignored. The development of these regional economies is how we manifest Canada’s Arctic foreign policy to the world, and the development of Yukon’s infrastructure is critical to the expansion of Yukon’s economy.
Investment in major infrastructure projects in areas such as roads, energy, and telecommunications must meet the needs of northerners both in the immediate future and the long-term future as Canada's north grows and evolves. The Government of Yukon recognizes this and is committed to the development of northern infrastructure. For example, we're in the process of establishing a technology and telecom development directive to bring together and focus the Government of Yukon's activities related to the information and communications technology sector and the telecommunications environment. The ICT sector is an important part of Yukon's knowledge economy and one of the sectors that the Government of Yukon is committed to promoting as we pursue economic expansion and diversification. As part of its mandate, the directorate will be undertaking a bankable feasibility study of a redundant fibre optic link to the south, most likely through Juneau, Alaska.
In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, we believe northern economic development is critical to northern sovereignty and needs considerable and consistent attention. Northern development means actively occupying the north with sustainable, economically thriving communities of healthy, active, community-minded citizens. Sustainable economic development in northern Canada benefits all Canadians.
Thank you.