Lucy Kuptana

Member Nunakput

Minister Responsible for Housing Northwest Territories
Minister Responsible for the Status of Women

Lucy Kuptana was elected to the 20th Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories in November 2023 to represent the constituency of Nunakput, which includes the communities of Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Tuktoyaktuk, and Ulukhaktok. A member of the Executive Council, she is the Minister Responsible for Housing Northwest Territories and the Minister Responsible for the Status of Women.

Prior to her election, Mrs. Kuptana was the Senior Administrative Officer for the Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk. She was also a director with the Tuktoyaktuk District Education Authority.

For 22 years previous, Mrs. Kuptana was the Director of Operations, Communications, and Culture with the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (IRC). In a volunteer capacity, she has served as a director of the Inuvik Homeless Shelter Society, trustee of the Arctic Inspiration Prize, president of the Inuvialuit Communications Society, director of the Inuvialuit Investment Corporation, director of the Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik Community Corporations, and a committee member for the 2023 Northern Youth Games “Inuvialuit Piuyausiat” in Tuktoyaktuk.

Originally from Aklavik and raised at her family’s bush camp in the Mackenzie Delta, Mrs. Kuptana obtained a Level II and Level III Certificate in Community Administration from Aurora College in the early 1990s and returned to graduate with a Diploma in Business Administration and Management in 2013. Mrs. Kuptana is currently enrolled with Yukon University, where she is working towards accreditation in the school’s First Nations Governance and Public Administration program.

Despite a successful career spanning decades, Mrs. Kuptana credits her husband and family in supporting her. She says she owes much of her success to those who have fought – and continue to fight – for Indigenous and Inuvialuit rights.

Mrs. Kuptana’s guiding principle is to lead with respect, empathy, knowledge, and the willingness to work hard for the constituents she represents and all residents of the Northwest Territories.

Nunakput Electoral District

Committees

Public Accounts
Lucy Kuptana
Nunakput
Member's Office

Yellowknife NT X1A 2L9
Canada

P.O. Box
1320
Email
Email
Phone
(867) 767-9143
Minister
Email
Email
Minister Responsible for Housing Northwest Territories, Minister Responsible for the Status of Women

Statements in Debates

Question 408-20(1): Housing Arrears Forgiveness and Repairs for Indigenous Communities
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 36)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this forgiveness arrangement has been an ongoing issue for a number of years. Housing NWT and this government's forgive hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars in housing arrears over the last 20, 30 years. We have to work with the clients at this moment. And we're working with a housing forum, which includes Indigenous governments, to review our policies to make these policies workable for the people of the Northwest Territories. Right now many of these policies are almost impossible for many to accomplish, so this is work that we're doing with...

Minister’s Statement 80-20(1): National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 35)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I want to talk about gender-based violence.

Two out of 100 residents in the Northwest Territories have reported intimate partner and family violence to the police. As of 2019, Statistics Canada lists the Northwest Territories as having the second highest rate of police-reported intimate partner and family violence in Canada, and we know that not everyone reports these incidents to the police.

Women are disproportionally affected by gender-based violence. Gender-based violence comes in many forms, and some of the people experiencing this violence may not...

Committee Motion 47-20(1): Tabled Document 193-20(1): 2025-2026 Capital Estimates – Health and Social Services– Deferral of Department, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Vice-president of finance and infrastructure will describe major retrofit.

Committee Motion 47-20(1): Tabled Document 193-20(1): 2025-2026 Capital Estimates – Health and Social Services– Deferral of Department, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Vice-president of finance and infrastructure will reply to the question. Thank you.

Committee Motion 47-20(1): Tabled Document 193-20(1): 2025-2026 Capital Estimates – Health and Social Services– Deferral of Department, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, with me today, on my left is president of Housing NWT, Eleanor Young. And to my right is the vice-president of finance and infrastructure, Jim Martin. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Committee Motion 47-20(1): Tabled Document 193-20(1): 2025-2026 Capital Estimates – Health and Social Services– Deferral of Department, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. For the 2025-2026 Capital Plan, Housing NWT is funding our projects internally. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Question 378-20(1): Housing Waitlist
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was trying to quickly look for the waiting list numbers for the Member while he was asking the question.

In terms of suitability for housing, again, this is work that's being done with Housing NWT. Suitability of housing requires many of our units to be modernized and improved. And this is something that I mentioned in the capital plan update last week, the ministerial statement that there's 364 units that were in the plan to be modernized and improved over the next couple of years. So this is an indication that Housing NWT is working, is planning, is looking at data...

Committee Motion 47-20(1): Tabled Document 193-20(1): 2025-2026 Capital Estimates – Health and Social Services– Deferral of Department, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. MLA Nerysoo is describing the older three-bedroom units that came into housing in the early 1970s, and they provided a tour of one of their renovated housing units. I'm not sure myself if these nine units are the units that are in question, so I will ask vice-president Jim Martin to provide some insight to that. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Question 378-20(1): Housing Waitlist
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Unfortunately, I wouldn't have that exact data at this moment, but I can commit to the Member to provide that to him for Mackenzie Delta riding. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Committee Motion 47-20(1): Tabled Document 193-20(1): 2025-2026 Capital Estimates – Health and Social Services– Deferral of Department, Carried
Debates of , 20th Assembly, 1st Session (day 34)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Again, I noted that Housing NWT only has so much funds, so we have to prioritize the retrofits across the Northwest Territories and this list is the priority list at this time. Thank you, Mr. Chair.