Nunavut government looking to overhaul contract policy

The Nunavut government is looking to make changes to a policy meant to give Inuit and northern-owned businesses a leg up when it comes to getting government contracts.

The policy has come under fire recently for a number of concerns, one of which is that non-Inuit-owned businesses were also benefitting from it.

The Nunavummi Nangminiqaqtunik Ikajuuti (NNI) policy came in to effect 12 years ago. The policy is based on Article 24 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement.

A recent meeting of business owners, Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) and the Nunavut government lead to some heated discussion and even finger-pointing.

But in the end, the group was able to make 13 recommendations. The group also agreed to monitor the policy more closely to ensure Inuit-owned businesses are actually owned and run by Inuit.

"It gave us a lot of material to add into our review process so that we could consider the changes, what changes are necessary, when and how they will be done. So, I was very grateful for that list of recommendations and to NTI for getting that meeting organized," said Ron Dewar, the executive coordinator at NNIs secretariat.

Dewar said many of the recommendations are aimed at NTI, such as asking the land claims organization to stick up for Inuit-owned businesses in court.

Policy criticized for being too confusing

Lori Idlout and her husband run an art gallery in Iqaluit and a home construction business, Nunavut Holdings. She's among a number of business ownersin the territory who want to see changes made to the policy.

"There are a lot of companies that are just barely over 51% Inuit-owned and yet they secure contracts where we don't, even though we are 100% Inuit-owned," said Idlout. "So, there are too many differences in how the policies are implemented for me to feel adequately voiced and feel like my issues are being addressed."

Idlout said one of the hardest parts of NNI is understanding the policy.

Dewar said the Nunavut Government will continue to work with NTI to improve the policy.