Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I would like to thank the committee for the opportunity to join my colleagues here today to speak to the Auditor General's recommendations regarding economic development in the Northwest Territories. I too will keep my comments brief.
Committee members are no doubt aware that, while the audit was being conducted, the government was in the process of creating the new Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, or CanNor for short. The audit report acknowledges this and observes that aboriginal economic development programs would be delivered by CanNor in the territories in the future. The report makes a recommendation for the agency that relates to these programs.
We have drafted an action plan to address it. This action plan is developed around the new Federal Framework for Aboriginal Economic Development (under the aegis of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada). This framework is the result of consultation and dialogue with aboriginal groups across the country.
This fall Indian and Northern Affairs Canada is conducting engagement sessions on the national programs that will be delivered under the new framework. CanNor has been working closely with colleagues at INAC to ensure that the concerns of northern aboriginal stakeholders are heard in this process. Engagement sessions have been held in Iqaluit and Whitehorse--I had an opportunity to participate in this session just last week--and a third session is planned for Yellowknife in November.
There are clear strategic objectives for the overall framework, and these are very relevant to aboriginal economic development across the north. We believe this responds to the audit recommendation directed to CanNor that a strategic approach to economic development should guide program delivery in the Northwest Territories.
The audit report also calls for coordination of program delivery. CanNor, as the only federal department with headquarters in the north, is in a unique position to do this. We're on the ground, and we are the only federal organization with a mandate that is focused exclusively on the north. This helps strengthen our program delivery.
In delivering our own programs and assisting in coordinating those of other departments, we leverage our strengths and we try to ensure that the comprehensive delivery process achieves more than the sum of the individual program measures.
We're confident that our delivery of programs under the federal framework for aboriginal economic development will grant us new opportunities to leverage federal investments to achieve success in further strengthening northern economic development.
With respect to performance management, I would also note that our action plan includes the development of a performance management framework, which has been completed and has already been approved by the Treasury Board Secretariat.
Finally, and to echo the comments of my colleague Mr. Wernick, CanNor has also acted quickly to support the federal action plan to improve northern regulatory regimes. The Northern Projects Management Office, (NPMO) offers a single window for proponents of major development projects working with federal regulatory and environmental assessment processes in the north. Modeled after the Major Project Management Office which is part of Natural Resources Canada, NPMO aims to improve the timeliness, predictability, and transparency of regulatory decisions in the north by coordinating the review of project proposals. We have high expectations that this important initiative will make a real difference in the north.
CanNor is committed to economic and community development in the Northwest Territories and across the north. We welcome opportunities to work with federal, territorial, and aboriginal partners in the pursuit of this goal.
Thank you very much.