Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Nunavut for raising serious concerns about funding for Inuit programs and the capacity of hunters and trappers organizations to participate in environmental assessments. She provides continued and very important advocacy for Nunavut. These are valid concerns, and they deserve a clear response.
Article 5.7 of the Nunavut agreement sets out the special features of Inuit harvesting rights. It establishes hunters and trappers organizations in every community and regional wildlife organizations to manage quotas, regulate harvesting and represent Inuit interests in wildlife management. These bodies are not optional. They are treaty obligations and core institutions under the agreement. Again, I thank the member for Nunavut for raising these concerns. For years, organizations in Nunavut have not received sufficient funding, and recent years have seen increased costs.
Canada funds the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board, which, in turn, supports these organizations. This is a legal obligation. These organizations are expected to participate in environmental assessments, manage wildlife sustainably and uphold Inuit harvesting rights. Until recently, funding for these organizations was limited.
In March 2025, the Government of Canada signed a renewed Nunavut agreement implementation contract with Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated and the Government of Nunavut for 2024 to 2034. This contract provides $1.5 billion from 2024 to 2034, plus $77.6 million annually thereafter, to support NTI, the Government of Nunavut and five institutions of public government, including 27 hunters and trappers organizations and three regional wildlife organizations. This funding will strengthen their capacity to participate in environmental reviews and manage wildlife effectively.
In 2024-25, the Government of Canada provided a renewed base annual budget of more than $7.5 million for the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board, $7.1 million for the regional wildlife organizations and $14 million for the hunters and trappers organizations. Funding is also adjusted annually for inflation. Special attention was paid in the renewal to make sure that these bodies would be sufficiently resourced to carry out their mandate under the Nunavut agreement. This renewed funding base approximately represents a 39% increase for the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board and a 169% increase for the regional wildlife organizations and hunters and trappers organizations. This, I believe, is significant.
Before closing, I would like to take a moment to highlight a few other budget 2025 items that are good news for northerners. Many major projects today include indigenous and territorial governments, northern communities, financial institutions and development corporations in designing, financing and leading. That is reconciliation in action. Our goal is to make certain that federal tools, financing and regulatory systems support indigenous communities in their involvement.
I will briefly mention the $1-billion Arctic infrastructure fund, to be funded over four years to support economic development and job creation in northern communities while protecting Canada's sovereignty. In addition to protecting and advancing the interests of Canada and Inuit in Nunavut, we are proposing to amend the Territorial Lands Act to support responsible and respectable stewardship of Crown land in Nunavut. I will briefly mention the commitment to Inuit Nunangat University as well. These are just a few measures.