Childcare in the NWT will soon be much less expensive.
On March 3rd, the Government of Canada and the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) announced that child care fees for NWT families with children from birth to five years of age in licensed child care will be reduced, on average, by 50 per cent. This decision is already in effect, as it was enacted postumously on January 1st of 2022.
Karina Gould, Federal Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, explained other parts of the announcement that she is excited by..
“Now, the Government of the Northwest Territories has also committed to reducing fees to an average of $10 a day by 2025, so that’s another important milestone along the journey. They’ve also committed to increasing the number of spaces availabel by 300 over the next five years. They’ve also committed to a wage grid for Early Childhood Educators.”
Minister Gould explained that the ost of childcare can be incredibly prohibitive, and is often the largest barrier that prevents parents from enrolling their children.
“This is gonna make a really big difference. I think we can all imagine what an extra $4,000 a year can do for our families. That’s quite substantial in terms of a family’s ability to pay for basic things.”
Some of the specific committments that the GNWT has made are improving affordability of early learning and child care, supporting the creation and sustainability of licensed programs, enhancing inclusion and participation, and fostering a qualified early childhood workforce.
The goal is to bring fees for regulated early learning and child care down to an average of $10 per day across Canada by March 2026.
