Quebec City – Québec Premier François Legault and Grand Chief of the Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) and Chairman of the Cree Nation Government, Dr. Abel Bosum, officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding on collaborative, long-term, balanced economic development in a spirit of respect for Cree values in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay Territory. The Québec Government welcomes the ambitious project put forward by the Cree Nation, which is in keeping with Premier Legault’s desire to broaden the collaboration initiated in 2002 through the Agreement Concerning a New Relationship Between le Gouvernement du Québec and the Crees of Québec, commonly referred to as the Paix des braves.

The project stems from a patient consultative process with the Cree communities and calls for:

• the extension of the rail network to promote economic development and reduce the impacts of trucking;
• the electrification of certain industrial projects;
• the sharing of infrastructure in the territory;
• local labour force training;
• the identification of new protected areas conducive to the connectivity of the territory’s wildlife habitats.

It is anticipated that the plan will extend over a period of 30 years to ensure the predictability and stability of the economic and social development of the Eeyou Istchee James Bay Territory and Québec overall.