A Cape Breton First Nation is holding itself up as a model community when it comes to bookkeeping.

The Membertou Mi'kmaq band is trying to sell its system for financial accountability to other native communities across Canada.

More than half the bands in Atlantic Canada are so far in debt, the federal government has had to intervene. In six years, Membertou went from a $1-million deficit to a balanced budget of $45 million a year.

The group did it by attracting educated natives to come back home, cutting costs, and engaging private companies in business partnerships. Membertou has now earned an international certification as a good place to do business.

"We can show the communities the steps we took to recover from our deficits," said Chief Terry Paul.

It's a model for success that the Grant Thornton accounting firm thinks it can sell to other reserves across Canada.

Membertou will help convince those reserves to buy in, and in return it gets a split of the accounting fees.

With the federal government demanding new financial accountability for First Nations, Membertou hopes the timing for its latest business alliance is just right.

First Nations are receiving tens of millions of dollars from video lottery terminals and fishing, but the total debt of 24 bands in Atlantic Canada has risen from $14 to $60 million during the past decade.

A substantial percentage of that is due to one or two bands, while 11 others are debt-free.