Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of ITI. Yesterday we talked about education with Minister Lafferty, and another view of education is with the hunters and trappers in the Sahtu region. I want to ask the Minister of ITI what types of programs we have for our on-the-land professors who want to take out young students to train them how to be a good hunter and trapper, and also to be a good person.
What kinds of programs are there that young people can apply for and what types of programs are there for the elders and trappers to take these young people on the land to sustain our traditional economy? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have the highly successful Take a Kid Trapping Program that is provided through the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment. We also involve the departments of ENR and MACA in that work. It is aimed at school-age children in getting them out on the land with trained trappers in the smaller communities. Thank you.
The Take a Kid Program is one of the most successful programs that I’ve witnessed in this government. It’s a good program; however, it’s geared towards high school students. I would like to ask the Minister what about the students who are outside the school-age system, the 18, 19 and 20-year-olds that are walking around, young men, ladies, where they want to go out with a trapper, what type of funding support can they give to them so that they can go out to the trapline.
Thank you. The current program, the Take a Kid Trapping Program, does not have the capacity or the financial resources to allow for it to take kids that are outside of the school system. I think the Member is talking about young adults or youth between 17 and 22 or 23. That’s something that perhaps as we move forward it’s something that I could talk to the officials at the Department of Justice, also the officials at Health and Social Services and the Ministers about perhaps getting some programming dollars for that segment of the population. It’s important that they are given the ability to get out trapping and learn the trade by folks that know it well. Thank you.
Thank you. With this idea that the Minister is putting out there, would he be able to, within this fiscal year, direct his staff to work with the other departments such as Justice, Health and Social Services, and Education, Culture and Employment to look at a new structure of a program through their working groups or the committees in the Sahtu to say this is something that’s unique, it’s different, where we can support these younger adults that want to learn about trapping and their way of life?
Thank you. Like I mentioned, it’s an area that we don’t cover off currently. It was highlighted in the Economic Opportunities Strategy as well. Again, by working with Justice, Health and Social Services and ITI, and also perhaps ENR, we can look at a way to address that segment of the population the Member speaks of and get some programming for those individuals as well. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We know the government is going to be entertaining some of the main estimates in the next couple of months. Is this something that the Minister can foresee that it’s something where we could have some of these discussions within the main estimates?
Thank you. Time will be very tight and I don’t want to get expectations up, but certainly I will discuss this idea, this option with folks at ITI and at Justice. I know the Ministers are listening, as well, to the Member’s concerns. Whether or not we can actually get something up and running for the business plans that are coming up, that remains to be seen. I don’t want to make any promises I can’t keep, but I’ll certainly take the idea and try to do something with it. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.
