New KIA president says social programming, mining top priorities

David Ningeongan, left, visits an underground shaft at the Kittila gold mine in northern Finland last year. The former Rankin Inlet hamlet councillor was elected president of the Kivalliq Inuit Association in December. Now, Ningeongan says the KIA is looking at opportunities to expand benefits, jobs and training to cash in on the region’s mining boom. (PHOTO BY JIM BELL)

Beneficiaries want to see change, says the Kivalliq Inuit Association’s new president – and that’s what David Ningeongan says he plans to bring to the region while in office.

For starters, Ningeongan hopes to expand the association’s partnerships with government agencies and other regional organizations to deliver better quality programming to Inuit across the region.

“I felt that the KIA could do more for the region as the association responsible for beneficiaries,” said Ningeongan, who was elected as KIA’s new president Dec. 12. “I want to use this position to try and get more programs for the region and look for more opportunities to work with other organizations.”

Closer partnerships would mean better funding for the kinds of traditional programs that beneficiaries value, Ningeongan said – such as sewing and sealskin preparation.

The KIA currently offers a range of programs, from hockey school to cultural camps.

But programs like the women’s healing project Somebody’s Daughter suffer from inconsistent funding, which prevents users from benefitting on a regular basis, Ningeongan said.

“People want more continuity and more regular programming in their communities – not just day to day,” he said. “We must make use of our social development department to get this off the ground.”

The KIA’s last permanent president was Jose Kusugak, the prominent Inuit leader who passed away last winter.

Ningeongan recognizes he has big shoes to fill, but he says he’s inspired by those who’ve led the region before him.

“It makes me want to work more for the people,” he said

Ningeongan, 37, is one of the youngest presidents to serve as KIA president and hopes to bring that youth to his new job. He comes to the job fresh off a two-year term as a Rankin Inlet hamlet councillor.

Ningeongan also worked for several years as a lands manager with the KIA, as well as a water license inspector with Indian and Northern Affairs.

That background in resource management kept Ningeongan close to the ground as mining activity began to spring up across the region, he said. As lands manager, Ningeongan said he did land use inspection of mining camps, to ensure companies were following their lease conditions.

“I’m still learning about active mines, but I have lots of experience with exploration sites,” he said. “And I knew that experience would be a benefit to this role.”

Ningeongan comes to the helm of the KIA in the midst of some of the biggest economic growth the region has seen, and he knows his new role requires him to be one step ahead.

“The KIA is definitely looking at opportunity to expand benefits, jobs and training,” he said. “Right now, our doors are wide open.”

Two impact benefits agreement will soon be negotiated with both the nearby Meliadine and Areva mining projects.

And the Kivalliq Mine Training Society has yet to secure funding beyond this year – something Ningeongan recognizes as a priority this year.

The Rankin Inlet-based organization has helped train and place 350 Inuit into mine-related jobs since its launch in January, 2010.

But that’s only been possible with the help of $2.5 million from the federal Aboriginal Skills and Employment Program — about a third of the mine society’s budget.

Now, the fate of the society rests on what happens with that federal funding, which is set to expire this year.

“I’m hoping the federal government steps in to provide more funding,” he said.

But the success of a recent pilot program shows that the region has got a head start in training, Ningeongan said.

In December, 11 students from Arviat graduated from the community’s first 10-week diamond driller training program, funded by Agnico-Eagle, federal and municipal agencies along with the KIA.

“We’ll help to keep that up,” Ningeongan said. “Whether it’s exploration or mining, drillers will be needed. They can even take their knowledge elsewhere.”

A second diamond-drilling course, which will be open to residents of other Kivalliq communities, is scheduled to start in February, 2012.