The Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach and IOC sign the “Aganow” agreement
January 31 2023 - 2:22PM
Business Wire
The Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach and the Iron Ore Company
of Canada (IOC) today signed an agreement to establish a mutually
beneficial relationship based on dialogue, collaboration and trust
between the company and the community over the coming decades. The
agreement was named “Aganow”, which refers to “iron ore” in the
Naskapi language.
This socio-economic agreement aims to create opportunities for
greater participation by Naskapi people in IOC’s activities through
training and development, employment, collaboration on
environmental projects, and procurement. It will also protect and
encourage the practice of traditional activities and provide
long-term financial benefits to the Naskapi Nation.
Chief Theresa Chemaganish of the Naskapi Nation said: “Naskapi
recent history is closely linked to that of IOC’s. Our grandparents
left Fort Chimo (now Kuujjuaq) by boat and by foot, in the 1950’s,
to settle in IOC’s new mining town of Schefferville and had to
adapt to a completely different lifestyle. Times have changed
tremendously since then and our Nation now has its modern treaty,
is self-governing since the 1980’s and is focused on its
future.
“The Aganow Agreement will help the Naskapi address many
priorities, such as protecting and promoting its language and
culture, providing adequate housing, creating meaningful and
satisfying employment opportunities, protecting the environment and
improving general quality of life. Our Elders have suffered
prejudice and discrimination, most often quietly. The Aganow
Agreement is not a conclusion, but rather a new chapter in the
reconciliation process and will hopefully help those who suffered
to heal and find meaning. ”
IOC President and Chief Executive Officer Mike McCann said:
“Aganow reflects IOC’s solid commitment to developing mutually
beneficial relationships with Indigenous partners. Over the last
ten years, we have made significant progress, signing agreements
with all five Indigenous communities present in the regions where
we operate. We appreciate the meaningful collaboration we have had
with the Naskapi Nation and look forward to working together with
them as we continue to integrate our goal of reconciliation in our
daily actions.”
The agreement is the result of approximately two years of
negotiations. It includes an expression of regret from IOC for its
lack of understanding of the Nation’s historic reality, culture and
livelihood in the past.
In recent years, IOC and the Naskapi Nation have had the
opportunity to collaborate on a number of projects, including
sharing expertise with Tshiuetin Rail Transportation, of which the
Naskapi Nation is a shareholder, bringing fiber optic to the
community and supporting a prefeasibility study for a caribou farm
project.
Notes to editors
The community of Kawawachikamach is located near Schefferville,
Quebec, where IOC carried out mining operations and exploration
activities between 1954 and 1982. IOC’s operations straddled the
Quebec-Labrador border. Approximately 975 Naskapi live in
Kawawachikamach and the surrounding area today.
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Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach Donna Marie
Sandy T +1 418 585 2686, Ext 242 mdsandy@naskapi.ca
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