Thank you, Madam Chair. Just that being said, with our EDOs in our communities, I think we should be passing that information on. I'll be doing that in regard to, like, a co-op between the communities, and see what they want to share, if possible. People used to come in, like tourists, and they would buy your whitefish and dried fish, and stuff like that, so just giving them an opportunity to sell their products or trade into communities, I think that's really good, to start like a little co-operative between communities.
One other question I do have, my last question, is: is there a possibility to start up having community freezers again in the communities? We had it before. It's been taken away, but then you have people, you get those little chest freezers the size of this and, you know, you can't live off that for the whole year for your family, if you have a big family, especially if you feed a lot of people. So a community freezer, a walk-in freezer for a community like they have in Paulatuk to assist those communities so they can get access. Good hunting time, they'll fill it up, and then it will last you from August to after Christmas, until April. Just a thought on that in regard to community freezers, if it's possible to do that with this COVID-19 that's happening, before COVID-20 comes. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm really hoping we don't see COVID-20. I want to see the end of COVID-19, that's for sure.
Community freezers have been another, not to do it to him again, but an ENR program in the past. However, your point is really noted that this would be a huge component of the food security discussion that we are having. Clearly, it would not, then, just be myself with the Health and Social Services, but we'll also be looping in ENR, as well. I do think that this is a conversation I can relay back not only to my economic development officers, for your other points, but also we'll have this conversation as part of the food security conversation. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. I will move on to Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. This page, too, is one of my favourites. I'm looking at the 2018-2019 BDIC annual report and I see that they have an accumulated surplus of $33.445 million as of March 31, 2019. Can I get an explanation as to why there is such a large surplus for BDIC? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The BDIC has a mandate or a legally mandated item to carry so much money in the fund. I don't have the details on that, so I think I am going to pass that over to Ms. St-Denis, but it isn't $30 million just to spend. I'll let her clarify that. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Ms. St-Denis.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, the $33 million surplus that the Member is referring to is, in fact, not actually cash on hand. It's actually the accumulated surplus from the value of assets less the value of the liabilities. I know that this question had come up in the House previously, so we'll be applying officially through our commitment made in the House, I believe, last Thursday. Thank you.
Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks. I appreciate the fact that some of the assets might be in tangible assets of some sort. What is this sort of cash surplus that is available to BDIC that gets carried over? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Ms. St-Denis.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I know that, later in the book, we are going to be having a discussion about BDIC, and our DFA will be joining us, as well. If possible, it would be appropriate if I could just maybe refer to those pages at that point.
Thank you. Any questions related to BDIC, maybe we will hold off until we are under the information items. There is a section that is directly related to that. Thank you. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I guess I have one question: what's a DFA? Director of finance and administration or something? Okay, a good guess, I guess, on my part.
I have some questions, though, about the five-year review that was done. Do I wait until we look at that page? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Do we have the information to answer that? Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. All that was stated is that there was a five-year plan done. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member.
Okay. I guess I will go down this rabbit hole, then. There was a five-year review done in, I think it was 2019. I am just wondering whether the department or the Minister has actually ever responded to that, and what is the status of progress on implementing the changes that were recommended? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. We are going to be doing a strategic plan review with the new CEO when they come on board and looking at the recommendations of the original plan. I can commit to getting back to the Member with more information on that. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Member.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Yes, I would like to see the government response to the recommendations. I don't think that I have ever seen that. I know that we did get a copy of the five-year review in the last Assembly.
I want to support some of the comments made by my honourable friend from Hay River about some of the kinds of businesses that BDIC actually owns. I have been and visited the Fort McPherson Tent and Canvas shop. I have been to Fort Providence and seen the fur shop there. I have been to Fort Liard and seen the retail store associated with the craft business there. Those are great employment generators in those communities. Fort McPherson Tent and Canvas is known around the world for its work. I think it has been a great investment. It has been great for the community.
I want to support what my friend from Hay River said. Those are the kinds of investments and opportunities that I would like to see BDIC do a lot more of in supporting communities. Gameti is doing some really great things around food security, and I don't know whether they have been able to tap into ITI funding. Hopefully, they have, but investments in those kinds of local businesses and enterprises are really great. That is what I want to see BDIC doing more of. If something doesn't exist in a community, maybe it's something that they can help create and start themselves.
In any event, I really look forward to what the Minister is going to provide in terms of the response to the five-year review. I want to encourage that BDIC get more active in supporting small businesses in communities and developing them where there are opportunities. Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The Gameti program was actually funded under CAP, the Canadian Agricultural Partnership. The subsidiaries in the communities are very important to the communities. I carry around a Fort McPherson bag that I was kindly presented by the Speaker. Every day, I am reminded, as I carry my computer around, of our great BDIC stories.
Again, I am not looking at things just from, "Is this turning a profit?" I recognize that there is a lot more value than just profits, and I am committed to our subsidiary companies and creating more opportunities for people in the communities through the BDIC. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Member.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Great to hear that. I guess, too, I also would like to know more about this Northern Food Development Program and how that is going to contribute towards building food security here in the Northwest Territories. I think that we were very lucky in the pandemic that we were able to maintain supply chains with the South, but I also know that, if we cut off Yellowknife in the middle of winter, we would probably last about three or four weeks before we would have to be looking at mass evacuations.
We have an agricultural policy that was developed in the last Assembly, but a lot of it was really focused on commercial production, small-scale or even large-scale; the focus wasn't really on food security. I am wondering what the department's plans are to try to develop a plan around food security. Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The Northern Food Development Program does aim to remove barriers, create employment, and facilitate the development of a northern food production sector by providing supports to commercial producers of northern fish, meat, or other food products, so that they are safe to be sold to consumers.
We have identified food security as one of our priorities of the 19th Assembly. It does cross more than just the ITI spectrum and into other departments, as we mentioned earlier, like ENR and Health and Social Services, as well. We have hired a senior advisor for food security for a one-year time frame at this point. The senior advisor for food security will assist us in the immediate COVID-related food security issues and coordinate the entire GNWT food security effort to identify any of the gaps and the opportunities that we can to strengthen food security results across the territory. It is our hope that, in this work right now, they're doing immediate relief for food security, but in that same time, they are going to be looking forward to the overarching direction that the GNWT needs to take to ensure that we are not so vulnerable to southern producers.
When this all started, even before COVID, what was going on in the United States was concerning to me because a lot of our food not only comes from the US, it comes through the US from Mexico. Already, in my mind, even way before COVID was ever on our radar, it occurred to me that, in the North, we are particularly vulnerable if the US and Canadian border were to ever shut off. As I have sat on the agriculture calls now with the federal Minister and my territorial and provincial counterparts, they also are very aware of the food security issues. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. I will move on to the Member for Deh Cho.
Mahsi, Madam Chair. I think this is everybody's favourite section. I note that this section also covers the BIP, Business Incentive Policy. I am wondering if I am allowed to speak to it in this section here.
Yes. Go ahead, Member for Deh Cho.
Okay. I guess, while there has been lots of talk about reviewing the whole BIP program and possibly revising it to suit northern businesses, I think there is a lot of talk about supporting our northern businesses, there are lots of stories about Southerners coming up and taking work from northern people. Even way up in the Beaufort-Delta, we are getting Southerners coming up there and taking work from Northerners.
In my previous life as a project officer, I have dealt with some contracts. I have seen that the Northerners lost big time to some southern contractors because they were able to underbid them, in some instances, by about half of the value. That was kind of shocking. They're going to keep coming up because they know they are taking work away from us. They're the ones getting the money, and the northern people don't because we have to deal with northern prices for materials and to get them shipped up, too. If we're talking about the Northern Manufactured Products Policy, you would want to buy from the northern-based companies. You can't compete with somebody that's going into Alberta because the southern companies, when they put their bids in they are using their product prices from the South, which is not fair to us. Because we're talking about because we've got to support northern companies, how do we put an even keel to the northern contractor because we keep losing out? We want the money to stay in the North.
We also have a BIP monitoring office in Hay River. I don't know what their relationship is with the whole program and whether you receive any type of reports on what has been used for northern labour, northern materials, a breakdown of those specific types of products, the procurement of northern products. Something like that may be able to help with the review when you see those types of itemized items because the Southerners will buy from the South. We note that if there are any Northerners, where do they buy from?
There are also instances when I've seen on BIP forms, I don't know if I'm allowed to disclose this type of information, but I've seen where Northern, local companies in the small communities, their business names were used on forms to get BIP points. What I've done in my position back then was I actually went and phoned the companies, the northern local companies, businesses, and they were just shocked, and they had never, ever heard. Nobody phoned them to tell them that they could use their name. If there are those types of things happening there, we never had anybody to really monitor anything or had a complaint mechanism type of thing in place where anything could have been investigated. I don't think anything has ever been, to my knowledge. I think we need to improve on a lot of these areas here, to really help the northern contractors. I know there is more to it than just meets the eye. We also have to confer with northern businesses, too. I'm wondering what your take for your staff on the whole BIP policy review and everything as the Members on this side of the House have been crying for ever since we've got into this Assembly. Mahsi.
Thank you, Member for Deh Cho. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. A few things, there. This wears both my hats because some of the procurement tracking is through infrastructure, as well. That's good. That's probably why both of these are usually with the same person. That work is going on. I have asked in that department for a review of where the money is being spent in the different regions. We are conducting that overarching procurement and BIP review that we've been discussing lots and then coming to AOC for conversations and input on moving forward.
The BIP office in Hay River is the BIP office. There are two people working there. They are there to check whether there is eligibility being met, those types of things, in the registration of the BIP companies. They have also been doing BIP training. All regions have an update on their BIP companies done in the last three years. We have the Beaufort Delta and the Sahtu to be done this year. We did 15 BIP workshops in 2019-2020. Those were stopped by COVID. We're ready to go once we are allowed to get back at it. That was actually one of the first things I said was one of my frustrations. I know the Member and I have talked about this, was always trying to go to a community, put somebody in my form as a BIP registered company, knowing they're a northern-owned company but that they weren't in the registry because, literally, they just hadn't filled out the forms, or no one had showed them how. That was one of the first things I thought we could do, was just getting as many of those companies registered.
To your point that sometimes people haven't phoned the company, as a bidder, for example, if I was to go do work in Tulita, there is one hotel in Tulita. I would obviously stay at the one hotel. It never would have occurred to me that I actually had to call the hotel to say that they would be okay to take me as a guest. I'm going to guess that's probably sometimes why that has happened, is they are maybe the only vendor, or they are the preferred vendor. I would recommend, and I will take that back to my industry counterparts, that they actually contact the companies to tell them that they are planning to stay with them if they use them.
I do acknowledge what you're saying that oftentimes something will be put on the form and that there is no accountability after the fact. Some of that does lie with the client departments, and the project officers for those projects specifically need to be ensuring that what is in the proposal is being met and carried out, and I think that's a larger issue that we've been talking about that needs fixing. I know within infrastructure the project officers have been instructed now, or reminded because they should have been doing it to begin with, but checking to ensure that, if this is the person who is put forward as a BIP northern, local labour, that that person is actually on the job. If you look at the federal government for the same type of situation. they actually require a reporting. I've instructed my department that that has to happen and has to happen now. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Deh Cho, did you have any questions?
Very encouraging to know that the reviews are in place, and you touch upon several of the areas that are kind of key. I noticed on even one job that I had in a small community, there was no local employment on the job. That was really surprising. There wasn't any. I'm saying that those people that lost out, it does happen here and there to some of the northern companies. That was a northern company. They just weren't using local labour. They were using other specialized tradespeople, I guess. We were talking about siding. You could still use local people. Some businesses are really good about using local people. There are still problems there, and it's encouraging that we will look at it because eventually, if things don't improve, we're losing businesses in our communities or areas. We're going to be crying for negotiated contracts. That might have to be the way to go, sooner or later. I know we're trying to be fair with chapter five or whatever it was of the agreement with the other territories. The other program here that is listed is, it says, the traditional economy program. What does that program entail? Mahsi.
Thank you, Member. Just noting the time, I'll let this one last question go. Your time is up, but just repeat the question, and, Minister, keep it short.
Pardon?
Repeat your question, and which program is it under?
[Microphone turned off]… program is and what is it about?
Which one is that under? Sorry, which page are you referring to, Member for Deh Cho?
That was on 201. It's not listed anywhere else, but it's listed on page 201, under the second paragraph.
Traditional economy. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I think that this is just stating that part of ITI's role in these programs is for the end game to have an economy around traditional methods. So there is not an actual, say, program called "Traditional Economy." It's just the catch-all for our harvesting and furs, et cetera. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. I'm going to go back to the Member for Kam Lake to allow her to finish up her questions under I think it was, where was it, the questions that you were finishing off with before, just to let you finish up. Thank you. Sorry.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes, I'd just like the opportunity to come back around to the Nominee Program, just to understand it a little bit better. We discussed that we make money by collecting fees. We spend money through staff. The program is currently on pause. Madam Chair, I'm wondering if the Minister could just speak a little to what mechanisms we use to protect the GNWT's investment in the Nominee Program.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I hate to do this, Madam Chair, but I'm going to take that question and return with a written answer. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Kam Lake.
