Author Description

The James Bay and Northern Québec Agreement is the first treaty Québec signed with the federal government and aboriginal nations, in this case the Crees and the Inuit. The Agreement was ratified on November 11, 1975 and is one of the most significant treaties ever signed with aboriginal people in Canada. Under the Agreement, the Crees and the Inuit assumed major responsibilities in education, health services and social services, administration, hunting, fishing and trapping. The Agreement also made provision for administrative structures and the funding needed to enable the Crees and the Inuit to take on these responsibilities. In return, the aboriginal people people released their rights to almost one million square kilometres of land. Québec could then develop the land in accordance with the rules set out by the Agreement. This new edition contains the 12 complementary agreements signed between 1978 and 1993. These agreements have amended the original Agreement, showing that it is a dynamic mechanism that can be adapted to the new socioeconomic situation of the Crees and the Inuit.