Relations with Federal, Provincial, Territorial and International Governments

NWT, Yukon and Nunavut

Territorial Premiers hold an annual meeting called the Northern Premiers’ Forum (NPF), to discuss issues of regional, territorial, national and international interest.

The NPF was created in 2003 with the signing of the first Northern Co-operation Accord, as a forum for the three Northern Premiers (Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut) to work together on issues of shared importance. The Accord was most recently updated in 2014.

The Northern Cooperation Accord’s objective is to promote cooperation and collaboration among the three territories on matters of mutual concern and interest, to promote sharing of information on these matters, and to enhance the working relationships among the three governments. 

Territorial Premiers discuss a number of issues at the forum including: circumpolar issues, health promotion and sustainability, northern housing, policing in the North, and northern infrastructure. Premiers have also used the NPF to release collaborative work, such as A Northern Vision: Building a Better North, which was updated in 2014, as well as the Pan-Territorial Adaptation Strategy: Moving Forward on Climate Change Adaptation in Canada’s North and Paths to a Renewable North: A Pan-territorial Renewable Energy Inventory in 2011. A Northern Vision outlines the three territorial governments’ shared aspirations for a prosperous and sustainable North benefiting northerners and all Canadians.