'You'd have to be a financial expert to understand the statements'

QUAQTAQ – Nunavimmiut will get more money in their pockets because of a $32.1 million profit-sharing cheque that the giant mining company Xstrata handed out to the Makivik Corp. April 3 during the organization's annual meeting in Quaqtaq last week.

Of this $32.1 million, $23 million will go to the two communities that lie closest to the mine – $14 million for Salluit and $9 million for Kangiqsujuaq.

Makivik will get $8 million, which it will distribute to other Nunavik communities.

Pita Aatami, the president of Makivik Corp., said these communities may decide for themselves how to spend the windfall – on either community projects or individual pay-outs to beneficiaries.

The annual profit-sharing payment from Xstrata – the largest amount Makivik has received to date – is a direct result of the Raglan Agreement, an impacts and benefits deal signed Feb. 28, 1995 with Makivik and local Inuit communities.

Even without this cash bonus, Makivik's finances have never appeared more rosy.

This summer, Makivik will receive an additional $54.8 million from its offshore deal, the Nunavik Inuit Land Claim, which will be put into a Nunavik Inuit trust fund.

The trust will manage the money that's leftover after Makivik makes a cash payout of about $500 to every Nunavik beneficiary.

Anthony Ittoshat, Makivik's treasurer, told AGM delegates that Makivik is enjoying good revenues.

But Ittoshat also said Makivik was not able to make as much money on its investments as expected, because of turmoil in North American stock markets.

This turmoil has worsened since the end of Makivik's financial year on Sept. 30, 2007.

At the AGM, Makivik staffers handed out individually-labeled copies of its financial statements to delegates. After a brief discussion, the financial statements were then taken back from them and collected.

A Makivik employee later handed Nunatsiaq News a 32-page section of the binder that contains the corporation's financial statements.

According to these statements, Nunavik Inuit beneficiary equity stands at $243 million, up $27 million from 2006.

Makivik netted at least $20 million from its two airlines and $1 million in royalties from the use of its shrimp license.

In its last fiscal year, Makivik spent about $11 million on its operations. The amount of money Makivik spends on operations each year is relatively higher than Inuit organizations in Nunavut.

The Nunavut Trust, which manages $1.3 billion compensation fund, gave Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. and the regional Inuit organizations a total of $41 million this year, which amounts to about four percent of the trust's equity.

These groups would receive $58.5 million if the Nunavut Trust were to give them the same proportion of beneficiaries' money that Makivik uses.

Makivik would receive only about $9 million for its operations if it used guidelines similar to those used by the Nunavut Trust.

Some beneficiaries who listened to Ittoshat's briefing say they understood that money is flowing into Makivik and to the beneficiaries – but that's about all.

"You'd have to be a financial expert to understand the statements," one man said.

Despite Makivik's healthy financial picture, speakers during the community reports given at the AGM called for more restraint in spending.

Inukjuak's board member, Rhoda Kokiapik, said beneficiaries in her community wanted to see less spending while Kuujjuaq's board member, Jobie Tukkiapik, said Kuujjuamiut want Makivik executives to stay in hotels instead of Makivik-subsidized apartments.