Newly Signed MOU Aims to Strengthen National Indigenous Partnerships

Friday, 24 May 2019 13:06

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed yesterday in Vancouver (Photo coutesy of Holland America)

Chair of the First Nations Major Project Coalition Sharleen Gale says the new Memorandum of Underanding that her organization has signed with the Indian Resource Council in Vancouver yesterday will strengthen Indigenous partnerships on a national level.

Gale says the new partnership will help them provide better resources around infrastructure, transportation and energy projects to the more than 50 First Nation her organization currently serves across Canada.

"There's many chiefs, economic development managers and development corporations that get involved in the work that we're doing. Now, with both organizations coming together, we're able to provide support for our members to make better informed business decisions regarding major infrastructure projects."

Sharleen says the new memorandum will also better serve First Nation communities who don't necessarily have the resources to finance major capital projects.

"A lot of infrastructure opportunities have passed communities by because they weren't able to get project financing at low interest rates. This has been something that has been happening for over 100 years. While some communities have opportunities, others get left behind. The way we think at the coalition, the more we work together, the stronger we are and lift each other up. I'm just really excited about the signing of this."

Sharleen says the partnership was quickly pronounced given how the two organizations have similar visions and how they work in the same areas in the country.

"By working together and attending each others meetings and presenting, including at venues in both Calgary, Vancouver and Prince George, we realized a lot of the things we were doing to build business capacity for our members were the same. We're both looking at ways to find solutions for our First Nations to be able to come together...and to make a good balance between economic prosperity and environmental stewardship."

Similar to the coalition , The Indian Resource Council is a a national advocacy organization representing energy interests for First Nations communities and individuals living on and off-reserve.

Some of the First Nation communities that are currently served in the memorandum include the Tahltan Central Government and Kaska Dene Council in northern Canada.