Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I speak about the importance of literacy. Literacy is helping people understand and use information. Somewhere, with functional literacy, people should be able to understand and reply to letters, complete forms, and apply for jobs and have the skills necessary to function effectively in a society.

During the Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight’s pre-budget consultation, the NWT Literacy Council made an excellent presentation to the committee. Some of the statistics on literacy were shocking, Mr. Speaker. Thirty-three percent of NWT adults have less than a Grade 12 education, Mr. Speaker. The situation is even worse for aboriginal people in the North. Fifty-five percent of aboriginal adults have less than a Grade 12 education, Mr. Speaker.

Another important measure for literacy is Grade 9 education. Again, aboriginal adults are far worse than non-aboriginal counterparts. Over 25 percent of aboriginal adults have less than a Grade 9 education. In smaller communities, this approach is 30 percent, Mr. Speaker. In Yellowknife, this is less than five percent.

Mr. Speaker, the needs are, clearly, strongest in the smaller communities, yet the Aurora College program is highly focused on three major campuses. That will be Yellowknife, Inuvik and Fort Smith. What is needed in the NWT is a concerted effort to set up adult education programming in small communities.

Mr. Speaker, I suggest that Aurora College needs to go beyond the current ABE programming. We need to prepare the people of the North for pre-trades certification programs, and also management diploma programs. Every five years, Aurora College prepares a corporate plan that identifies the priorities for the next five years. That is currently underway, Mr. Speaker. It is great to see. But now they can hear the people, the public, and what the communities want the program to deliver.

Mr. Speaker, my suggestion is that Aurora College should get to our communities to identify the needs, and to set out short and long-term goals and objectives, based on the community priorities. People in the communities know what they need and what they want. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause