Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am pleased to provide Members with an update on the Public Service Capacity Initiative, which Municipal and Community Affairs is jointly implementing with the Department of Human Resources, the NWT Association of Communities and the Local Government Administrators of the Northwest Territories.
The program was introduced in 2009 and has been developed around a series of actions that are aimed at enhancing community government public service capacity. Building public service capacity in both the GNWT and community governments is part of the Refocusing Government Initiative that contributes to the Assembly’s goal of effective and efficient government.
One of the larger programs, the Advancing Local Government Administrators Program, has three objectives. The first is to assist community governments with recruitment, development and retention of NWT residents into local government administrator positions. The second objective is to provide meaningful and practical training and development opportunities to individuals currently employed as or interested in becoming a local government administrator. The final objective is to develop a stable pool of qualified local government administrators in the Northwest Territories.
To date, funding has been provided to 10 community governments to access support for these objectives. The community governments are: Fort Good Hope, Fort Liard, Fort Resolution, the Hay River Reserve, Sachs Harbour, Ulukhaktok, Wekweetì, Whati, Norman Wells and Fort Providence.
Another element of the Public Service Capacity Initiative is the Community Government Mentorship Program which is designed to link new or less experienced local government administrators with experienced local government mentors. The program is being introduced this year and will assist five to 10 local government administrators annually with mentors.
I would also like to highlight some of the initiatives that the Local Government Administrators of the NWT are leading. These include a marketing campaign, recruitment initiatives, the development of a pool of professionals who can provide short-term support to local governments, and training events including professional development at their annual general meeting. In addition to the initiatives being led by the Local Government Administrators of the NWT we are also working with the NWT Association of Communities. This organization is our main partner in delivering good governance workshops, which to date have been accessed by over 500 councillors from 28 community governments.
As community governments take on greater responsibilities for the delivery of programs and services to residents, it is important that the Government of the Northwest Territories and our partners, the NWT Association of Communities and the Local Government Administrators of the NWT, continue to provide ongoing support and assistance. I will be pleased to continue to provide my colleagues with updates on the Public Service Capacity Initiative as we continue work on this important program to recruit, retain and develop our local government administrators and to assist community governments with governance initiatives.
This is an important initiative that will help us achieve our vision for sustainable, safe and vibrant communities.
