Mahsi, Madam Speaker. The NWT is the only jurisdiction in Canada that has an Official Languages Act that recognizes 11 official languages. I'll give the Minister of ECE the honour of naming them all at the appropriate time. The Official Languages Act recognizes that preserving and enhancing the use of official languages is a shared responsibility of the Legislative Assembly, the GNWT, and the NWT language communities. The Official Languages Act establishes three legislative bodies that play a role in protecting, revitalizing, and promoting Indigenous languages. The Minister responsible for the Official Languages Act has the responsibility for setting the direction and coordination of GNWT policies and programs related to official languages. The Minister responsible for the Official Languages Act is the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.
Madam Speaker, I would like to recognize the interpreters who have been providing interpretation services for the duration of this current session. I understand, due to COVID issues, not all of the official languages are in attendance in the House. The interpreters are: for the Tlicho, her Dene name, Maro Drygeese Sunberg from Dettah; Jonas Lafferty from Behchoko. The proper terminology for North Slavey is Sahtuot'ine Yati. We have Sarah Cleary, who is originally from Deline, and Theresa Etchinelle from Tulita. From South Slavey, the proper terminology is Dene Zhatie. We have Joe Tambour from K'atl'odeeche. It's the Hay River Reserve. The Chipewyan, the proper terminology is Dene Suline. We have Tom Unka from Fort Resolution and Dennis Drygeese from Lutselk'e. For the French, and I just found out this is by a live feed from Edmonton, we have Francine Lapointe and David Black. All the interpreters were provided with NWT flag pins and Legislative Assembly pins.
Madam Speaker, this House is appreciative of the continued services the interpreters provide to the Legislative Assembly so many of the language speakers in the Northwest Territories can keep abreast of the business of the House. Masi.