Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell us what her vision is for an economic recovery for the NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for ITI.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, obviously the vision of this Assembly is laid out in the priorities of the Assembly, and certainly the vision in response to the COVID19 pandemic is laid out in Emerge Stronger, and Mr. Speaker, certainly that vision continues to evolve in response to the pandemic.
As for the Department of ITI as a single department, their role is to provide supports to all sectors of the economy so looking both from, you know, the smallest retail and the smallest hospitality or singletour operators all the way through to large investments, and we're going to continue to ensure that full spectrum is being covered as we recover from the pandemic. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, given the closure of many mines in the NWT in the coming years, can the Minister tell us if she and her department have plans to open the NWT up for business. Specifically, are there plans to create more desirable economic conditions to attract and secure greater investment in the NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there is tremendous amount of work happening not only in the Department of ITI but across the government for that very exact purpose, to ensure that the Northwest Territories is a place that has all of the right pieces in place to help the economy grow. We have everything starting from the regional economic development plans, which is an opportunity to look at the individual and unique circumstances of each community from fisheries to maker spaces to knowledge economy, film, all the way through to work that's happening at the higher end of largescale investment to help revitalize the resource exploration sector and advance projects.
On that one, Mr. Speaker, consistently we hear that the barriers in the North around infrastructure, the infrastructure deficits seen across, that they are something that exists that can be addressed. We have the three large projects that are being advanced, Mr. Speaker, and much that's happening on a somewhat smaller scale. For example, Mr. Speaker, there's the Mackenzie Valley operational dialog that's meant to really look at how we can make our regulatory system more approachable and easier for those entrants. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell us what her department's plan is to encourage more investments into the NWT to support future projects that will help create economic development for the NWT? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, again, it's a question that I could probably spend 20 minutes on my own speaking to. So what I'm going to suggest I do, Mr. Speaker, is focus specifically on the space of doing more around the things that we have that are so good in the Northwest Territories. And where I'm going with that is on ESG, or environmental, social, and governance factors. It's a growing area for investors all across the world, Mr. Speaker, but it's something that in the Northwest Territories is how we do business. We have strong regulatory system. It's comanagement in the Northwest Territories. There's social and governance factors where we value partnerships with Indigenous governments. The Intergovernmental Council, Council of Leaders have all come together. We have protocols now for the development of the Mineral Resources Act regulations.
And then the other comment I wanted to make, Mr. Speaker, is that this is a place where another area for future investment all around the world right now is on critical minerals and metals, and we are doing work in that space, so. And why I highlight those two in particular, Mr. Speaker, is that while everyone hopefully knows about the priorities and the advancements of the priorities, these are two areas that have been getting attention and work even as we continue to advance the priorities, and even though they weren't there two or three years ago, we figured out that that's an area that we have strengths and we're going to promote them. Thanks, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Thebacha.
Mr. Speaker, we've had many briefings from the Minister on various topics. Can the Minister tell us if she's aware of a new group called the NWT Indigenous Leaders Economic Coalition? If so, does the Minister support this group and does she intend to work with them to help strengthen the NWT economy? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, Mr. Speaker, I'm quite familiar with them. I've certainly have had the opportunity in this role to meet with them. And over the last several years that they've been around, Mr. Speaker, I know they've undertaken a variety of projects on behalf of the government or have been funded through SEED money and otherwise for other projects and activities that they have undertaken in the community, Mr. Speaker. So certainly continue to work with them, continue to also be working with the modern treaties and selfgovernment forums and generally any opportunity that we have to engage with organizations that are working with Indigenous governments and that have had involvement of the Indigenous governments, we would always be looking for those opportunities. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Deh Cho.
