Lands Program Overview
Indian and Northern Affairs funds two programs, the Regional Lands Administration Programs (RLAP) and Membership, INAC no longer funds the Estates Program, however we do assist band members with settling family estates. At the present time, M’Chigeeng operates the land program under RLAP and Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) is working to facilitate greater responsibility and control by First Nations over their lands and governance systems. In 2002, INAC concluded an evaluation of the RLAP program and as a result of the 2002 evaluation a new and more comprehensive land and environmental management program was designed. The recommendations contributed to the development of a new Reserve and Environment Management Program (RLEMP).
The RLEMP includes a professional development program that will prepare First Nations for their roles and responsibilities under a broader scope of land, resources and environmental management. The first part of the training involves university courses such as legal systems, natural resources management and environmental studies. This training is delivered by the University of Saskatchewan. The second part of the training involves courses on the technical aspects of managing land under the Indian Act. This “technical” training is delivered by the National Lands Managers Association (NALMA) upon successful completion of the RLEMP training program, First Nations Land Managers will be certified by NALMA and will receive a certificate from the University of Saskatchewan to confirm their successful completion of degree credit courses in land and environmental management.
The RLEMP funding formula is based on four components:
- the volume of land and natural resources transactions
- the band population, reserve area and quantity of land holdings
- the land use, environmental and compliance activities
- and the base funding for operational and administration cost
