Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In March of this year, the federal government announced an increase to Canada's immigration targets, up to 300,000 people, with an emphasis on family reunification and refugee and humanitarian cases but also with a new and express going of boosting entries in the "economic class." That means that Canada will welcome 12,000 or more skilled workers, business people, or caregivers in the coming year. Mr. Speaker, we need to make sure that this influx benefits our territory.
The GNWT has set its own immigration target: an increase of 25 per cent in the number of applications to the NWT Nominee Program each year for the next five years. If you ask anyone who runs a business, they'll tell you there is a shortage of skilled labour in the NWT, and the statistics back it up. The long-term forecast isn't favourable, either. With the skills gap and many workers approaching retirement, the most recent labour market information suggests that 33 per cent of territorial job openings over the next 15 years will require a skill certification or college diploma, not to mention the projected need for university and management-level expertise. The new federal immigration economic class presents an opportunity for the NWT to address this labour shortage.
While there are more than enough jobs for everyone, our population doesn't have the skills to fill many of those jobs. Those who do, often work in the mines or for government. This means that small businesses, which simply can't afford to match the salaries of either, are the ones who bear the brunt of the labour shortage. If we want to diversify our local economies, we need to ensure that small businesses have access to the skilled labour they need to grow. Mr. Speaker, we have to remember that small businesses in the Territory have the capacity to become international corporations: Igloo Building Supplies and Northern Arc cranes both started just down the street from where I live in Hay River.
Entrepreneurs are doing their part to try and grow our economy and we need to do a better job supporting their efforts. To achieve real outcomes, the departments of ECE and ITI must coordinate their efforts and take decisive action to improve our immigration outcomes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.