Thank you very much for this opportunity.
[Witness spoke in Inuktitut as follows]
ᓇᑯᕐᒦᖅᖄᕈᒪᔪᖓ ᐃᓕᑦᓯᓂ, ᐱᕕᖃᖅᑎᑕᐅᒐᑦᑕ ᑕᒡᕙᓂ ᐅᖃᕈᓐᓇᓐᓂᑦᑎᓐᓂ.
[Inuktitut text translated as follows:]
First, I would like to thank you for giving us the opportunity to speak here.
[English]
I come to you as a vice-president for Makivik Corporation, representing the Inuit of Nunavik but also speaking on behalf of all Inuit across Inuit Nunavik.
I'm going to mention just a few challenges we have with the allotted time we have in regard to indigenous economic development.
I would say that the first and foremost challenge would be access to capital or capital for infrastructure. Residing in fly-in only communities makes it tremendously hard for many of our communities to even begin to create businesses that would otherwise benefit the communities they are in.
I can give you comparative numbers, which represent the latest comparison for construction compared to the south and the north. Southern costs per square foot were roughly estimated at $150 per square foot. I believe that was before COVID. Costs went through the roof. In the north, the costs are up to $700 per square foot, so you can see the differences and challenges we have when it comes to building infrastructure in the north.
These costs are compounding the already challenging issues that many of the businesses face in our communities and across Inuit Nunavik. Even the simplest business that would attempt to start would require capital, whether it be just a consulting service requiring limited infrastructure, equipment for a restaurant, or even a professional trades service provider who would be required to invest heavily in the infrastructure.
Take into account the operating costs of these infrastructures, which are exorbitant costs because you have to transport the operating expenses, such as fuel for heating. I can tell you that at the moment, we're dealing with a temperature of -55 ℃, which is quite heavy on all the infrastructures we have and increases the cost of operations for many of our communities and many of our businesses.
I mentioned as well that these communities are fly-in only communities. Many of the communities we have are not connected to the main highway network, and there are limited services that come each year, meaning that the shipping season is quite tight, so we have to rely on air transport.
Just in northern Quebec, 14 communities are fly-in only communities. We're not connected to the main electric network, so we do not have infrastructures such as fibre optics. This compounds the challenges that many of the Inuit communities face, not to mention that once we are finally able to get our shipping season open, from July up until the end of October, we only have four months in order to manage all the essential needs for the communities, which will have to last for the rest of the year, up until the next shipping season. In the end, it requires extensive planning and extensive management of infrastructure and of capital, which do not necessarily generate any revenue.
The last point I would like to make has been echoed by many of the panellists, which is basically the priority of contracts. If there are any contracts that are coming up for bids, it is essential for many of our businesses to have access to these contracts by priority, if the bids are happening in their communities or in their regions. I believe I've echoed this sentiment by all first nations across Canada. I have heard these same messages across Canada, as I am also a board member for the National Indigenous Economic Development Board.
Thank you for the time.