Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to report to the committee today on progress made within each of my portfolios in working towards the three core priorities of our government, improving economic and social conditions and the creation of two new territories.
Mr. Chairman, the responsibilities of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment cover a wide range from early childhood through kindergarten to grade 12 and post secondary education and training and continuing opportunities for life long learning and cultural development. Programs and services in these areas are key in this government's strategies to increase knowledge, improve skills and build capacity at the community and regional levels. Given the scope of the department's responsibilities and the time available, I will try to touch on the few most significant indicators of progress.
In early childhood, we now have 65 centres across the Northwest Territories providing spaces for over 1,350 childen with support programs targeted at improving the quality of programs, ensuring child safety and helping staff improve their skills and knowledge. We have a subsidy program for low income earners, and in the corporation with the Department of Health and Social Services, we have introduced the healthy children's initiative to ensure early and accurate identification of children at risk and the development of effective community- based programming designed to improve their opportunities for success.
Mr. Chairman, access to quality education continues to improve. In the kindergarten to grade 12 system, we have focused efforts in five key areas: extension of secondary school education into more communities, curricula development, refinement of school financing, facility upgrading and student improvement. This has resulted in over 30 extensions of new curriculum for science, from kindergarten to grade six, for math from kindergarten to grade nine, as well as Dene Kede and Inuuqatigiit programs; continuing refinements in the school funding formulas; six new schools and 14 renovation projects are either complete or under way. Most importantly the continuing increase in our graduation rates.
We now have over 17,000 in our schools and each year more of them graduate. The growth in numbers of graduates is not as quick as I would like to see, but the trend is positive. We must build on a solid foundation of quality programs, teacher excellence and effective student support in order to continue to improve results.
Like many northerners, I am concerned that the continuing growth in student numbers will continue to impact on the pupil/teacher ratio. This may make the process of improving results more difficult.
In postsecondary education and training, enrolment of northerners in colleges and universities have since 1991 nearly doubled from 1,107 to 2,034. Aboriginal students now make up 56 percent of those receiving assistance. We have now completed the process of dividing Arctic College into two public colleges, Aurora College serving the western Northwest Territories and Nunavut Arctic College serving the Nunavut regions.
We are making progress towards the goal of increased jobs and reduced dependency. The delivery of the Canada/Northwest Territories Infrastructure Program has already resulted in more than $17 million in projects in our communities and the creation of over 1,300 short and long term jobs.
Other initiatives aimed at increasing jobs and reducing dependency include the Investing In People Program, which is expected to include more than 200 participants in 21 communities this year alone.
The Working Together Creating Opportunities for Students and Youth programs have helped northern employers provide more than 8,000 work weeks for northern students and youth in the past six months alone.
The Nunavut Unified Human Resources Development Strategy and our departmental coordination of the preparation of Inuit employment plans has successfully established plans and actions which will increase northern employment in future years, as will the Western Northwest Territories Strategy, which should be completed before the end of the calendar year.
The entire Income Support Program has been reorganized to be more effective. Access to the program is now conditional on being involved in the community through productive choices. For the most part, this has been very successful for participants, communities and financially. We have worked with communities to build up community capacity to deliver the program, and I am pleased to say, more than 25 communities have taken on the program delivery responsibility. We have seen increasing self-sufficiency residents and a reduction in overall payments.
Accomplishment in Culture and Heritage Programs are diverse and cover a vast range of activity. With the focus on establishing effective working relationships with a number of aboriginal organizations, the far reaching results include the upgrading and expansion of the museum in Iqaluit, the development of a community museum in Baker Lake, repatriating a 19th century teepee which once belonged to an important Dogrib elder, supporting the rediscovery of the technology involved in birch bark canoe construction. Recording heritage sites and associated traditional knowledge in the outer Mackenzie Delta, recording traditional travel routes to the barrens and planning a language and cultural centre in Tuktoyaktuk.
Many of the responsibilities of the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment overlap with those of the Minister responsible for Youth. Perhaps, one of the most exciting developments emerging from a cooperative approach with other Ministers will be the integrated strategy for children and youth to be completed in the coming year. Working together with our Youth Employment Strategy as I mentioned earlier, has generated employment opportunities for over 800 students and youth in all regions of the Northwest Territories.
Turning to another area of responsibility, as Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, I can report continuing advances in its record of strong corporate and customer performance. With a seasoned staff of 285 northerners of whom, more than 40 percent are indigenous or long-term residents, the corporation is striving to set strategic direction that will guide it beyond the establishment of the two new territories.
As of June of next year, the Power Corporation will have paid down all of the $53 million of debt it assumed when the Government of the Northwest Territories bought its share of the former Northern Canada Power Commission. It has also returned in that same period dividends totalling $29 million to the government. I have given notice that I will this week introduce legislation to keep the corporation whole and owned by the future Western and Nunavut Territorial Governments. The corporation is engaged in exciting new developments with the expansion of district heating systems across the north as a commercial way of tapping heat from diesel generating engines, plus significantly reducing greenhouse gases. A five-year program to assess every power plant in the system to inventory of environmental status and planned cleanup action where necessary. Significant progress in waste oil management, PCB removal, community site improvements and work in cooperation with the Northern Science Institutes on the development of wind technology in the Arctic.
Switching hats for the final time, you will recall in my role as Minister responsible for Western Transition Planning, last week I tabled the Action Plan for the Transition to a New Western Territory which was prepared in consultation with Members of the Western Caucus. The plan is an important step in the process to establish a stable and secure new Western Territory. I look forward to working with my colleagues in this House as well as other western leaders to continue to implement the plan.
This government is facing with tremendous challenges over the next two years, Mr. Chairman. In meeting those challenges, it is essential that we not forget our primary purpose is in the delivery of programs and services to northerners.
We have come a long way, but there is much left to do. I look forward to continuing to work with all of you in achieving this government's priorities. Mr. Chairman, I would like to publicly thank the two senior people who have helped make sure I can take credit for making some progress, the deputy minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Mark Cleveland and the chair and CEO of the Power Corporation, Mr. Pierre Alvarez. The teams they lead work hard to make all three of us look good.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to close with a quick thank you to each of the Members in this Assembly for your support and guidance over the past two years.
Mr. Chairman, the style of government we enjoy is unique. Nowhere else in North America are Ordinary Members so involved in the decision-making process. I have to say I have enjoyed it, except for one particularly hot issue. The tremendous support and advice from the Standing Committee on Social Programs, I thank them for their help. A particular note of appreciation, Mr. Chairman, must also go to my Cabinet colleagues and the Premier for all of their assistance. Thank you.
--Applause