Don't lose focus on the economy, private sector pleads N.W.T. candidates

Elections, conventional wisdom says, are won or lost on the economy.

And while the victorious candidates in the N.W.T.'s Oct. 1 election will complete their term before the territory's diamond mines stop producing, many are already campaigning on the need for a boost to the private sector.

In the lead-up to the campaign, CBC spoke with eight private-sector operators across the territory, from contractors working with the mining industry to entrepreneurs in the territory's outlying communities.

All were worried about an economy becoming increasingly dependent on government spending, and feared a future where mining would no longer be the driver of growth.

John Henderson oversees the operations of Det'on Cho Corporation, a contracting company he calls the "economic arm" of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation.

Most of the company's work comes from partnering with the mining industry, and Henderson said the company has already seen its revenues plateau as the territory's mines slow down.

While the company has been able to cut costs to keep wages growing, Henderson said it will take new, major infrastructure investments to prevent a severe economic decline.

"We need infrastructure projects like Taltson [Hydroelectricity Expansion], like Slave Geological Corridor, because that's what's going to drive dollars into the territory," he said. "If we don't see that, then it's precarious."

Henderson said he hopes candidates don't "lose focus on what drives our economy, besides bureaucracy and government."

Red tape ties up remote contractors

In many places outside Yellowknife, however, it is the government that drives the economy.

Heather Bourassa manages Arctic Circle Enterprises, a contracting company based in Fort Good Hope that holds government contracts for fuel deliveries and winter road maintenance.

"We have had other opportunities, like with oil and gas … [and] when the fibre optic line was going in," she said. "They're really good, but they're intermittent."

Though Bourassa said her relationship with the territorial government is good, like many other private-sector employers, she said keeping up with the territory's red tape was a regular nuisance — especially in a remote community like Fort Good Hope.

"If you need a food establishment permit, for example, the guy is in Inuvik, and might come … once a year to inspect you," she said.

New regulations sometimes require operators to travel to take certification workshops offered only in Yellowknife, she said.

"They're not communicating very well to businesses about updated legislation," she said.

Like many in the region, Bourassa is hoping for a push to complete an all-season highway in the Mackenzie Valley.

At the moment, she said, "everything's very seasonal … it would probably bring more continuity or more stability to projects."

Improved access could also open new economic opportunities, she said.

"I just think about how things have worked out for Tuk[toyaktuk]," she said.

Tourism not a replacement — yet

The construction of an all-season road to Tuktoyaktuk was an economic boon for the community, bringing in thousands of new tourists every year.

But even where tourism is flourishing, it is still being hampered by red tape.

Lawrence Nayendo operates Arctic Motorcycle Adventures, which offers tourists an opportunity to ride the Dempster Highway from Dawson City to the Arctic Ocean.

"We're so far behind the Yukon in tourism," he said, "but I believe they are working really hard to catch up."

Nayendo said the cost of tour operator permits is inconsistent between communities. Worse, only locally-based operators are regularly asked for their permits, meaning unlicensed southern companies operate at an advantage.

"They're … trying to enforce it, but how are you going to enforce it?" he said. "It's pretty hard to stop everybody on the highway."

Tourism, which brought in a little over $200 million in revenue last year, has been identified as a potential growth sector by the territorial government.

Its 2019-20 tourism strategy set the goal of $235 million in visitor revenue for the following fiscal year — a value representing less than five per cent of the territory's gross domestic product in 2018.

One of the obstacles to growth, the strategy identifies, is a lack of qualified operators.

John Blyth is the president of the Fort Smith Paddling Club, which runs Paddlefest, a summer festival that attracts hundreds of tourists to the community.

"At the end of the day itself, the GNWT itself can't run the tourism operations," said Blyth. "What's stopping the average guy from opening a tourism operation is not that they don't want to be a guide … it's that people don't want to do the business side of it."

Blyth says the government should offer business services to guides as a way of getting their operations up and running.

Even then, Blyth said, with flights so expensive, it will be a challenge to attract tourists away from Yellowknife.

Retailers struggle with high operating costs

Along with her sister Nikki Ashton, Dayna King owns La Dee Dah, one of the territory's handful of boutique retailers, with locations in Yellowknife and Hay River.

Her competitors, she said, are online, and don't face the high operating costs her business faces.

"It would be nice if there was a way for [the government] to help with shipping costs," she said. "We can't reduce our shipping costs, because we have such a low population."

That low population means competition for people, too.

"We're competing with the GNWT for employees," she said, "and they can afford to pay a far higher rate."

King was born and raised in Hay River. She said over the years, she's seen the town's economy change — and felt the effects as a business owner.

"Even as a little kid, I remember NTCL, the shipping company, was the big company in town," she said. "I just remember going to the Christmas parties and there were so many people that worked there."

NTCL was purchased by the territorial government in 2016. Since then, King said, it's become a government town.

"It's not a shift that's good for your economy," she said. "Government jobs are amazing, and they're great to have, but you can't have an entire economy based on government."