Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I am very pleased to provide a report to the Assembly on an essential part of MACA's community development initiatives in the NWT.
Last month, MACA hosted a Recreation and Sport Directions Conference in Hay River. Over 80 delegates from nearly every NWT community and all recreation and sport organizations attended this important planning event.
During the conference, I had the pleasure of working with many dedicated and hard working people. Most were volunteers. Many were northern-trained recreation professionals and several, I am pleased to say, were Members of this Assembly. I would like to thank my fellow MLAs who could attend, or who wrote to me with their comments or concerns.
Together, we spent two days looking at what we can do to build a stronger recreation and sport system here in the NWT. We began by reviewing our achievements and the challenges we have overcome during the last two decades. Then, building on our experience of the past, we started to work on a plan that will guide the future development of the NWT recreation and sport system.
By the end of the conference, Mr. Speaker, we had agreed to a common vision for the future of recreation and sport in the NWT. We also identified a number of priorities and possible actions under each of those priorities that will help us achieve that vision.
The department is now working on a plan for the development of a stronger recreation and sport system based on these meetings in Hay River. An important goal of the plan will be to improve access to recreation and sport programs for all residents of the NWT. The plan will particularly focus on those from smaller communities and those who face barriers to participation.
In July, I will be providing Members with a copy of this draft plan and the Hay River conference proceedings. At that time, I will be asking Members for their comments so that the department and its recreation and sport partners can finalize their own plans and begin to implement them later this year.
On a related matter, Mr. Speaker, I am also pleased to report that the NWT will be hosting one of six national conferences being sponsored by the Honourable Denis Codeine, Federal Minister of State for Amateur Sport.
On July 13th and 14th, delegates from across Nunavut, the NWT and Yukon will be meeting in Yellowknife with Minister Codeine and his officials to provide input on a new Fitness and Amateur Sport Act.
This is an unprecedented opportunity for Northerners to influence national policy and to air our unique northern perspectives in this area. I hope that some of the ideas developed in Hay River will be considered by Minister Codeine as he considers changes at the national level.
Mr. Speaker, in Towards a Better Tomorrow, Members of this Assembly recently confirmed our commitment to helping Northerners improve the quality of their lives. Recreation and sport programs provide important opportunities for all of us to live healthier and happier lives. Improving those opportunities is one way that this government can achieve the vision we have outlined.
The NWT recreation and sport system has come a long way in the last few years through the dedication and commitment of a large number of volunteers and professionals. With the continued assistance and support of the GNWT, these individuals and the communities and organizations they represent are now ready to make an even greater contribution to a vibrant, prosperous and unified Northwest Territories. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
-- Applause