IQALUIT, August 20, 2008 – The Honourable Rob Nicholson, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, on behalf of the Honourable Stockwell Day, Minister of Public Safety, today announced close to $570,000 in funding to support four crime prevention projects that focus on helping at-risk Aboriginal youth in Nunavut.
"The Government of Canada is serious about improving the lives of Aboriginal youth," said Minister Nicholson. "We are p leased to support these local crime prevention projects in Nunavut that provide at-risk youth with the necessary skills to live healthier lives, make better choices and envision a brighter future."
"This is good news for Nunavu t. By working together with the federal government, this type of investment will help give Nunavummiut and communities the tools at critical stages to make good choices and develop effective crime prevention strategies," said Paul Okalik, Premier of Nunavut and territorial Minister of Justice.
The funding comes from the Government of Canada's National Crime Prevention Strategy (NCPS), which provides funding support to strategically selected projects that contribute to prev enting and reducing crime as well as increasing knowledge about what works in crime prevention. Priorities for funding include:
- addressing early risk factors among vulnerable children and youth;
- preventing yo uth gang and drug-related crime;
- preventing recidivism among high-risk groups; and
- fostering crime prevention in Aboriginal communities.
Budget 2008 provides $30 million per year in addition al, ongoing funds to the National Crime Prevention Strategy. These funds are in addition to the Strategy's permanent annual funding base of $33 million. The NCPS is administered by Public Safety Canada's National Crime Prevention Centre (NCPC) a nd is managed in collaboration with the provinces and territories.
Informat ion:
Media Relations
Public Safety Canada
613-991-0657
Mélisa Leclerc
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Stockwell Day
Ministe r of Public Safety
613-991-2863
