Jackson Lafferty

Mr. Speaker, I think we do have that capacity with the Official Languages Board giving us some advice on moving forward with this particular piece of work. It is important for us. We are, as a department, looking at the technology sources. The First Dene and also the WinMac Dene fonts are in the Macintosh area. So we are moving into today’s technology. That is what we are faced with today. We are looking at options to move forward on this particular item on Dene fonts. It is recognized that we need to work with that. That’s what the aboriginal language groups are working with, with our...

There’s been some changes within the Income Support area. We are developing a new initiative, “ready to work,” for those individuals who are employable. So that’s one of our initiatives at Education, Culture and Employment. I’ll be more than willing to share that with the committee and the Member once it’s produced. I’m also willing to share that information the Member has requested, certainly.

Our career development officers from the regional perspectives and also the community level have direct contact with the industry, our government — the GNWT, ECE department — and with the local First Nations organizations and also with Income Support — the clients, if that’s the case. So they are providing various workshops, like I said earlier, providing certain tools for individuals to enter the workforce, whether it be upgrading or taking on a training-on-the-job program.

Mr. Speaker, we do provide Communities Skills for Work, which prepares our Northerners for work in the workplace, and...

I think we are acting on it. The recommendations that were brought forward by previous governments will be compiled. Those types of discussion will happen August 12–13, 2008, here in Yellowknife. It is an important discussion that we want to move forward on. Like we’ve said, this has been ongoing for a number of years now. I think it’s time to move forward. I’m looking to that, and my department is looking forward to working with the aboriginal groups on this issue. Mahsi.

It is important to deal with this particular issue the Member has raised. One of the areas we’ve been dealing with is the language boards: the Aboriginal Language Revitalization Board and the Official Languages Board, which deals directly with the community and the leadership at the community level — the educational leadership.

Certainly this is one of the priorities of the group we work closely with and with our department. The Dene font the Member has referred to has been discussed for a number of years now, as the Member alluded to. The Dene fonts available may have been outdated, but that...

We do have data on information that the Member’s referring to. I’ll be more than willing to share that with the Member. It’s been updated every now and then from certain communities. In some communities there is high unemployment. Some communities, specifically on training and education, the post secondarys…. We do have that data at our Department of ECE at our disposal.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We do recognize the small communities that may not have career development officers, but they are served out of regional offices. Specifically on Lutselk’e and Fort Res, they are being serviced out of the South Slave regional office. There is also, specifically with Lutselk’e…. We have a joint partnership with DEAS, schools and Aurora College.

Just on the career development alone, those officers do provide counselling and, also, workshops in the communities that deal with resume writing, budgeting and educational planning. We do provide those services to the communities...

The safety aspect of it was administered by Public Works and Services. There is a report being done on this particular facility, the building. It is a 1960s building. There are problems with the foundation, the structure itself. Public Works and Services would have the report, and I’m sure the Minister of Public Works and Services is willing to share it with the Member upon request.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. To deal with the isolated small communities, those particularly without road access, we do provide funding for shelters or programming, and certainly my department can work with the Member to highlight what we have done, what we have currently in the program. I can certainly assist with those communities based on their needs to deal with homelessness. So we do have programs available for that.

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This year marks a significant recognition for one of my well-respected community members of Behchoko, Father Pochat.

Mr. Speaker, considered a young man among the Tlicho Nation, Father Pochat celebrated his 80th birthday on April 18. Grandon College alumni held a special celebration event as well on May 17 to 18 to recognize Father Pochat for making positive changes in their lives.

Mr. Speaker, Father Pochat was the head administrator of Grandon College in Fort Smith from 1950 to 1970. Under his leadership the college produced many of today’s Northerners, the...