Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will join the MACA pile-on.
Mr. Speaker, I am concerned that while the GNWT says they're learning from missteps and disasters in evacuations, we continue to see elders and folks with disabilities and those who support them struggle when they're displaced. Equity of support means that for some folks we need to do more. So, Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell me what is the GNWT doing to improve how we provide compassionate support to elders and folks with disabilities before, during, and after emergencies, especially evacuations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Great Slave. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So the government has been working with communities to identify residents in the community that require extra assistance in case of an emergency. That being said, the government may not be fully involved at that time, especially if it's a local emergency. Even in that scenario, the government may still be involved locally in the fact of helping, you know, assist somebody out of an apartment building or whatever that may have been evacuated. So the process is updating. We're learning from the things that have happened. You know, we're -- I will have to say even this year, I've noticed a big change in how we are working with other departments within the government as part of the whole emergency management scene and dealing with elders, persons with disabilities, and people that require extra assistance.
So the 2023 wildfire season and the after-action review has opened a lot of eyes. We're working with NGOs to, you know, also get some assistance for people with disabilities, for, you know, whoever may need some extra assistance. So we're continually working on this and as we go through the after-action review and update everything, I'm hopeful and I'm pretty certain that a lot of these concerns will be addressed. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this past year, we saw elders and folks with disabilities getting mutual aid support from community members and not the GNWT. However, I'm glad that the GNWT agrees that emergency social service plans are required at community and NGO level but not every elder or person with a disability is within those structures. So will standard operating procedures be developed and demoed with NWT communities, the regional and territorial EMOs, and the external jurisdictions to the south, to prioritize folks with more complex needs in evacuations, including those with disabilities and our elders? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. So when it comes down to the training and the development, working with the communities at the all the levels, the local level, the regional level, you know, we're working with the community governments to make sure that the things are in place to help out these residents. A lot of the problems that we've seen even just recently are not really related to the government. It's related to circumventing the process, and it's been a very frustrating thing for me to even see because we have the resources in place, we have the opportunities in place, to assist with the residents that require those needs. So for myself, you know, with the resources that are required, the government is working hard to make sure that we're covering all that off. I know the EIA is working with ESS to build a framework that outlines the roles and responsibilities in dealing with these types of scenarios. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Final supplementary. Member from Great Slave.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to reiterate my colleague from Deh Cho's September press release that stated that safety alone is not a sufficient measure. A constituent's well-being in regards to this year's evacuation of Fort Providence. Since the GNWT has elected not to create a standalone emergency management agency, how does the GNWT expect to have dedicated capacity to work through ongoing policy development and identify operational needs on an ongoing basis so as to ensure the dignity of residents in exceedingly difficult situations like evacuations? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have the staff within MACA to deal with this type of stuff. We have the staff that are trained in emergency management. We have the staff that are able to, you know, build the plans and also work with the legislation. I'm quite confident that the department is able to manage the types of emergencies that we've been dealt with the last little while. I know there's also concerns about the capacity. The Government of the Northwest Territories have -- it's actually even still advertised -- have requested for GNWT employees who wish to step up. There are trained GNWT employees who in their regular line of work may not be involved in emergency management, but they're also volunteer firefighters, they're also something else in a different community, but they're willing on stepping up and helping out the GNWT during those times. So we have those surge capacity lists that are available for the government to use in the time of need. So is the government doing everything they can to work during emergencies and emergency evacuations and local emergencies? I believe we are, and we'll continue to improve. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Oral questions. Member from Range Lake.
