Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to first ask some questions to the housing minister in regards to data collection as a whole for the organization.
Right off the top, Mr. Speaker, I'm wondering if the Minister will commit to changing the current data collection practices of Housing NWT and commit to strategic data collection and analysis? Thank you.
Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Minister responsible for Housing NWT.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Member for the question. I'm always looking for different ways of doing things within this portfolio as well too, and this has been discussed already. And and answer to her question is yes. This is a focus of the strategic renewal that is currently underway. As an example, we are working with data with the Indigenous governments, looking at their distinctionbased funding and how they are going to be spending it. Whether they want to have those discussions with us or not, it takes a whole of a government, and also the community governments as well too, to address the housing needs. But in order to identify them, we need to be working together in order to collect that data information. That's the first approach. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Minister for that yes. I'm wondering, Mr. Speaker, if the Minister is working with ISSS to determine best practices and available systems for data collection, management, analysis, and use. If not, will the Minister commit to working with ISSS to determine a solution for integrated data collection management and use? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I hope the Member is going to be quite happy. This is going to be her second yes. Housing is already working with ISSS to complete necessary system changes. With the renewal and program changes, we are working on a number of areas. We are looking at also including a creating a data dashboard that will make the data collect more easily, accessible for the decisionmakers. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I want to thank the Minister as well. Mr. Speaker, I want to acknowledge that data sharing increases the risk of exposure as well as potential for bias. But there are existing frameworks that work to reduce this bias. The First Nations principles of ownership, control, access, and possession assert that First Nations have control over the data collection process. This is also known as OCAP and is the framework that protects Indigenous sovereignty as well as people at risk of or experiencing homelessness. In addition to those concerns, experiencing homelessness, or the broad structural factors that impact housing, is a traumatic experience. So will the housing minister commit to trauma informed data collection through frameworks like OCAP? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, housing is aware of the potential impacts and risks of data collection, both for Indigenous people and the public. As part of the renewal strategy, housing is aiming to take a traumainformed approach, not just to data collection but to client service as well too. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Why stop at three, let's try for a fourth.
Mr. Speaker, I want to acknowledge that the Minister did inform us that housing is intending to create a data dashboard with the information that they collect, and I want to thank the Minister for that. The Minister might remember that the Department of Finance also has their open data portal that was recently released. And I'm wondering if the Minister of Housing will commit to ensuring that collected housing data is, where appropriate, updated on the GNWT's open data portal as well so that we have a consolidated solution for GNWT data for the residents of the Northwest Territories? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we collect information and create this data collection, I will update the Members as well. I just want to be careful on how this information is going to be distributed and how the files are going to be handled. I will follow up with the Member. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Tu NedheWiilideh.
