Norman Yakeleya

In the Aboriginal Development Program this is something that programs choose to support women into senior management, and I’m speaking more for the senior Aboriginal women into the programs.

Does the GNWT have a succession program planning to help the Aboriginal employees move into management or senior management positions?

I would like to recognize Ms. Barbara Hood, also, and the other ladies and the recipient of the Wise Woman Award for the North Slave in the House here.

I would like to recognize again the two young Pages from Deline on this historical week for them, Miss Faith Gaudet, daughter of the chief negotiator, Danny Gaudet; and Miss Hannah Beyonnie, whose mother is Rita Beyonnie who is shadowing the students from ?ehtseo Ayha School in Deline. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I look forward to the additional information the Minister can provide to us just to continue supporting this program in our communities in our region.

I just want to conclude that from the support that we received from oil companies, I know that in the Sahtu with the breakfast food program, I know Husky Energy has contributed to their communities for a breakfast program, and I want to state for the record that some of these oil companies have done some good in our communities such as the breakfast program for the families. As children, they don’t know. Food is food. They...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I appreciate the additional information and thank the Minister for the commitment to look at the issue in the Sahtu. I realize that there is some work that is needed to be done, and certainly through the assistant deputy minister, you guys have come through with some good numbers for us in the communities. We appreciate that.

I guess the point that I want to make, there are certain individuals in our communities that certainly look forward to the help in seniors’ heating subsidies or the early child benefit or even student financial services and the income assistance as...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have probably about four major items that I want to talk to the department about.

The first one has to do with the college contribution to the department and the contribution to our small communities. You know that I want to thank the Minister for two things. First, to conducting the needs assessment in the Sahtu region for our students, the number one issue of that needs assessment has to deal with the literacy issue in our region by the younger people. Listening to them on CBC Radio and reading the article in the Globe and Mail, there is a pretty good indication as to...

What’s the strategy for filling vacant positions in small communities in regions outside of Yellowknife?

Mr. Speaker, I talked about women in general, and specifically in our communities, and the changing roles that women have with today’s society. I want to ask the Minister of Human Resources in regards to women in government positions specifically in senior management. I want to ask the Minister, in regards to the number of women in the Aboriginal Development Management Program, what type of percentage do we have in that program?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This being International Day for Women, I thought every day was a day for women.

I want to say a few things about our women. No, I’m not going to sing the Shania Twain song, titled “Man, I Feel Like a Woman.”

---Laughter

Our women have come a long way in today’s society. From the traditional roles of raising and guiding our precious little children to becoming world leaders in our country, there has been a cultural change. As a matter of fact, it was a woman who helped save a nation of Aboriginal people in the Southern Plains tribe legend, according to the elders’ story...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My comments will focus around three major things for us in our region. I want to make comments to the Minister. The first one is around Sahtu, which is a stand-alone region within the department, DPW. Our regional office is up in Inuvik. There are plans to have a manager of some type in the Sahtu region. We have employees in the region, yet we still have to call Inuvik, to the higher levels of authority. I want to not only talk to this department but other departments within government. My region wants to become a stand-alone region. With all the challenges our region has...

Thank you, Mr. Moses.

Motion 6:

As originally drafted, clause 15 of Bill 12 authorizes the Pension Committee, at any time, to retroactively reduce accrued ancillary benefits and to reduce core pension benefits on a going-forward basis.

In the event that there are insufficient assets to maintain the solvency of the NEBS plan, Bill 12 also requires that the Pension Committee request the consent of the NEBS Board to increase contributions to the pension fund before taking any actions to change or reduce benefits.

This section of the bill, as originally written, also gives the board the power to veto...