News Releases
Ministers Meet to Increase Physical Activity
YELLOWKNIFE (May 28, 2008) - Federal, provincial and territorial Ministers of Sport, Physical Activity and Recreation set targets to increase rates of physical activity among Canada’s children and youth at their annual meeting in Victoria, B.C. last week. Ministers also agreed to provide funding to support team travel to the North American Indigenous Games in British Columbia later this summer.
The Honourable Helena Guergis, Secretary of State for Sport, announced that Sport Canada will provide $1 million in funding to support team travel to the North American Indigenous Games to be held in Duncan, British Columbia in August 2008. The funding will be distributed on a formula basis to all provinces and territories. The announcement will result in additional funding of $144,000 for Team NWT, according to the Honourable Michael McLeod, Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. “When combined with other funding from the Government of the Northwest Territories, this will support more than 250 athletes, coaches and officials to attend the Games,” said Minister McLeod.
Ministers heard from representatives of the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute that 90% of Canadian children and youth are not active enough to meet Canada’s guidelines for physical activity.
“We agreed that the need to find ways to encourage youth to be more active is a top priority for all jurisdictions in Canada”, said Minister McLeod. Ministers have agreed to try to change national trends by seeing all children and youth increase their physical activity levels by 30 minutes per day by 2015.
Ministers will also continue to monitor physical activity levels among adults in every province and territory. Progress is being made towards the goal set by Ministers in 2003, to increase physical activity among adults by 10% by 2010.
For more information: contact:
Kevin Brezinski
Manager, Policy and Planning
Municipal and Community Affairs
(867) 873-7512