Another hug-a- minister.

Another area that needs some attention in fairly quick time is Tourism Nunatsiavut.

Tourism is relatively new to Nunatsiavut, it should not be but it is in its infancy just from neglect and the approach that has been taken over the past years. Most of the neglect falls in the Provincial lap, but LIA and now NG have fallen into the same traps and malaise.

There are all types of tourism and target areas. The target and the types of tourism for this area have been discussed, consulterized [my new word] almost to death. Tourism and its promotion for the area is way behind the 8 ball.


Parks Canada [PC] is now involved in the area with the inception of Torngat National Park Reserve. A great venture with a great future for the area if handled correctly.

PC has oodles of dollars that are being thrown around rather haphazardly according to some. One area of puzzlement is that PC seems to be dictating what happens within the larger Tourism areas of Nunatsiavut. Getting involved with what should be community development and the like. Marveles what oodles of tax payer’s money will do sometimes?

The PC approach seems to be stacked heavy with people from different bureaucracies slash consultants [some times the lines are blurred]. I witnessed a presentation at a tourism conference recently by one of these slash people. I was shocked to hear the same information and spiel that I had heard 5 or 6 years ago at another tourism workshop, all be it by a different slash person.

At this recent conference there was heavy criticism from an outside source that the whole shebang was stacked heavy with these slash people along with favored people waiting for the usual largesse.
Also criticized was the fact that very few local businesses not in the LOOP were not invited to attend.
Also mentioned was the lack of real vision of how to tackle the complicated situation of tourism in the area.
The slash person using his visit to a Buddhist Temple in Cambodia as an example had no relevance to the task at hand IMO.

Then there is this trip to Ecuador and the Galapagos islands. 12 people, 150 grand, way down in the equatorial area of South America.

I don’t know, maybe it’s just me [though I think not] equatorial-sub arctic, something just does not gel.

Any way in keeping with the stated aims of the President Elect of NG, more openness, accountability, and inclusiveness is in order in tourism too.
I understand that nepotism is hard to avoid in small communities, the opemess and accountability can help reduce any real and perceived concerns in that area.