Archived - Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor) Highlights for 5th Anniversary

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On August 18, 2014, the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor) will be celebrating its fifth anniversary. CanNor was established to help develop a diversified, sustainable, and dynamic economy across Canada’s three territories, while at the same time contributing to Canada’s prosperity. We work with communities to develop and diversify local economies, and take advantage of the immense strengths of Northern Canada.

Through its programs and services, and working alongside its partners and stakeholders, CanNor has helped to create jobs, growth and long term prosperity for Northerners and all Canadians.

Over the past five years, the Agency has invested more than $196 million supporting 918 projects to foster economic development across the North. This support has gone to community involvement in major resource development projects, contributed to business capacity and innovation, improved local infrastructure, and enhanced participation in local labour markets.

CanNor’s Northern Projects Management Office (NPMO) has been a vital part of the Agency’s success over the past five years. NPMO has a mandate to improve the timeliness, predictability and transparency of regulatory processes in the North to contribute to creating a more stable and attractive investment climate in the territories. It works with northern communities to prepare them to participate in and benefit from major projects and resource development. It also works with project proponents to navigate the regulatory review process.

NPMO has also been effective in signing Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with key stakeholders, including the Northwest Territories, the Qikiqtani Inuit Association and the Kitikmeot Inuit Association with other MOUs under negotiations. As of April 2014, the office was working with more than 50 companies, and tracking 16 projects at the environmental assessment phase.

A few highlights from the past five years

In 2012, an investment of $27 million over five years was announced to expand adult basic education in the territories through the Northern Adult Basic Education Program (NABEP). Its goal was to improve access to training Northern Canadians so they could take part in the labour market. In 2012-13 more than 60 programs were offered to over 1,600 adult learners.

CanNor’s programs and services have played a vital role in the development of the resource sectors of the North. As of July 2014 there are over 30 major resource and regional infrastructure projects in the regulatory process across the three regions. Once in production these projects represent over $26 billion in capital investment and over 12,000 jobs.

One of the key ways CanNor has supported the resource sectors is through investments in geosciences. Since its creation CanNor has invested more than $15 million to encourage exploration and contribute to sustainability in the mining industry. This support includes a $3.275 million investment in the Northwest Territories, and a $5.475 million investment in Nunavut and $900,000 to the Yukon College’s School of Mining and Technology to develop and launch Geosciences Technology Geo-Hydrological programs.

In other resource sectors, such as the fisheries, CanNor has invested more than $4 million including $220,000 for an exploratory fishery and funding to revise Nunavut’s fisheries strategy.

CanNor has been active in its support of the tourism and cultural industries, with investments that have helped support Nunavut artists with marketing and equipment and with finding new sources of stone that can be used for carving. Northern Canada’s unique culture, geography and language make it a spectacular tourist destination and a strong and dynamic tourism industry is important for the development and diversification of the northern economy. To support tourism in the territories, CanNor has invested more than $13.5 million, which includes $3.5 million for a pan-territorial marketing campaign, $1.7 million for Nunavut Tourism, $1.2 million for Northwest Territories Tourism and $2 million for the Yukon International Marketing Campaign.

Aboriginal economic development has also been a key focus for CanNor. Of the northern and Aboriginal individual or community-owned businesses supported by the Agency’s Aboriginal Development Programs, 88% were still in operation after the first, second, and third year. Investments include supporting the Niqitaq Fisheries, over $124,000 in 2013 to the Kaska Nation in Yukon to support geological exploration, and $49,000 in 2013 to the Qikiqtani Inuit Association to assist them in outlining potential for commercial and/or residential development on Inuit-Owned Land in six communities in the Qikiqtani region.

Quotes

"CanNor support has enabled the delivery of applied field projects by the Canada-Nunavut Geoscience Office that support responsible natural resource development, protect investments in infrastructure and disseminate geoscience data and mineral resource knowledge through the internet. Results of this work will help develop the Nunavut economy, protect its infrastructure and support a wide range of decision-making." – David Mate, Canada-Nunavut Geoscience Office

"What we have done is we approached CanNor to help us with, particularly for us, help fund the Impact Benefit Agreements with the Tlicho to be able to get that agreement in place to be able to allow the mine to move forward. So CanNor has been a big help in providing some of the funding for that and it’s those types of initiatives that help junior mining companies be able to continue with their activities and be able to successfully develop a project." – Rick Shryer, Director, Regulatory and Environmental Affairs, Fortune Minerals

"We’ve had a very good relationship with CanNor, they’ve been working alongside with us for a number of years, helping us with all the issues and challenges with our project, both from project development to environmental, community-related issues." – Sahba Safavi, Project Manager, MMG Limited.

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