| Regions of the Northwest Territories | |
|---|---|
 Administrative regions of the Northwest Territories with regional offices | |
| Category | Territory |
| Location | Northwest Territories |
| Number | 5 |
| Populations | (2021) 1,926 (Dehcho Region) — 23,515 (North Slave Region)ref name=2021census/> |
| Government | |
| Subdivisions | |
The Canadian territory of the Northwest Territories is subdivided into administrative regions in different ways for various purposes.
The Government of the Northwest Territory's Department of Municipal and Community Affairs divides the territory into five regions. Other services have adopted similar divisions for administrative purposes, making these the de facto regions of the territory. These divisions have no government of their own, but the Northwest Territories' government services are decentralized on a regional basis.
Some government departments make slight changes to this arrangement. For example, the Health and Social Services Authority groups Fort Resolution with the North Slave Region, and divides South Slave Region into two regions: Hay River and Fort Smith. The Department of Natural Resources uses the same borders, but calls the Inuvik Region "Beaufort Delta".
| Map | Region | Demographics (2021) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Census [1] | Indigenous population profile [2] | |||||||
| Name | Regional offices(s) [3] | Total | Change (from 2016) | First Nations | Métis | Inuit | Other | |
 | Dehcho Region | Fort Simpson | 1,926 | -7.6% | 1,375 | 95 | 40 | 510 |
 | Inuvik Region | Inuvik | 6,205 | -1.9% | 1,800 | 185 | 3,470 | 2,065 |
 | North Slave Region | Yellowknife Behchokǫ̀ (sub-office) | 23,515 | 2.86% | 6,125 | 1,050 | 785 | 17,455 |
 | Sahtu Region | Norman Wells | 2,259 | -7.7% | 1,530 | 145 | 50 | 490 |
 | South Slave Region | Fort Smith Hay River (sub-office) | 6,820 | -12.7% | 3,000 | 1,045 | 300 | 3,820 |
Land and self-government treaties with First Nations, Inuvialuit (Inuit), and Métis groups recognise a significant amount of authority for their governments to manage land use within agreed-upon areas. These areas are each much larger than the area fully owned by the indigenous government. Within each of these areas, the indigenous nation has jurisdiction over several areas of law, and land use is effectively co-governed by the territorial government and indigenous government.
A treaty also exists with the Salt River First Nation, but it establishes reserves rather than a joint land use area.
| Jurisdictional area | Region(s) | Indigenous government | Land claims | Self-government | Notes | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acho Dene Koe Territory | Dehcho Region | Acho Dene Koe First Nation | An agreement-in-principle was signed 5 February 2014. | Self-government discussions are in early stages. | Land claimed includes land in the NWT, Yukon, and British Columbia. The NWT portion is in the southwest of the province, surrounding the hamlet of Fort Liard. | |
| Akaitcho Territory | North Slave and South Slave Regions | Akaitcho Territory Government | A comprehensive agreement is in discussion as of 2021 [update] | North Slave Region east of Wekʼèezhìı and the eastern half of South Slave Region. The southern part of the region is in Treaty 8 territory, and the northern part is known as Chief Drygeese Territory. North Slave Métis Alliance also has claim to the area. The eastern portion of the land overlaps with claims by the Ghotelnene K’odtineh Dene. | ||
| Colville Lake District | Sahtu Region | Behdzi Ahda' First Nation | Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement (1993) | In negotiation. | Part of the K'ahsho Got'ine District of the Sahtu Settlement Region. | |
| Dehcho Region | Dehcho Region | Dehcho First Nations | none | In negotiation as of 2021 [update] | Lands claimed approximate the Dehcho Region, although the Ka'a'gee Tu Band claims land farther east. The claim overlaps the Acho Dene Koe Territory in the southwest and overlaps with Katlʼodeeche Gotʼi Ndee in the east. | |
| Délįnę District | Sahtu Region | Délı̨nę Got’ı̨nę Government | Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement (1993) | Délįnę Final Self-government Agreement (2014) | Part of the Sahtu Settlement Region. The government took over responsibilities of both the Délı̨nę First Nation and the Délı̨nę community government. | |
| Fort Good Hope District | Sahtu Region | K’ahsho Got’ine Community Council (Fort Good Hope First Nation) | Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement (1993) | In negotiation. | Part of the K'ahsho Got'ine District of the Sahtu Settlement Region. | |
| Gwichʼin Settlement Area | Inuvik Region | Gwich'in Tribal Council Nihtat Gwichʼin (Inuvik) | Gwichʼin Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement (1992) | Gwichʼin Tribal Council is negotiating a self-government agreement for all of Gwichʼin except the Nihtat Gwichʼin in Inuvik, which is negotiating its own agreement. | The communities of Aklavik and Inuvik fall under both this region and the Inuvialuit Settlement Region. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] Overlaps with land claimed by First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun, which is based in Yukon. |  |
| Inuvialuit Settlement Region | Inuvik Region | Inuvialuit Regional Corporation [9] | Inuvialuit Final Agreement (1984) | In negotiation. | Area covered by the agreement extends into Yukon. It borders the Gwichʼin Settlement Area and the communities of Aklavik and Inuvik fall under both land claims [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] |  |
| Katlʼodeeche Gotʼi Ndee | South Slave Region | Kʼatlodeeche First Nation | Organized in reserves under the Indian Act. | South of Great Slave Lake. Its western boundary is approximately 50 km (31 mi) west of the Mackenzie Highway (NWT Highway 1), and its eastern boundary is approximately halfway through Wood Buffalo National Park. Its claimed land slightly overlaps in the west with claims by the Kaʼaʼgee Tu Band of the Dehcho First Nations. Half of its population lives in Hay River Reserve. | ||
| Norman Wells District | Sahtu Region | Tłegǫ́hłı̨ Got’įnę Government | Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement (1993) | Signed, awaiting ratification. | Part of the Tulita District of the Sahtu Settlement Region. | |
| South Slave Metis Region | South Slave Region | NWT Metis Nation | an agreement-in-principle has been signed | in early stages. | Located in the South Slave Region, with current Metis councils based in Hay River, Fort Smith, and Fort Resolution. It claims two cabin sites that overlap with land claims made by Kʼatlodeeche First Nation. | |
| Tłı̨chǫ Ndé | North Slave Region | Tłı̨chǫ Government | Tłįchǫ Land Claims and Self-government Agreement (2003) | Comprises the western half of North Slave Region, excluding the city of Yellowknife. Lands directly owned by the Tłįchǫ government are one continuous block in the centre of the region. The region is also called Wekʼèezhìı for the purpose of the water board. |  | |
| Tulita District | Sahtu Region | Yamoria Community Secretariat / Tulita Dene First Nation | Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement (1993) | In negotiation. | Part of the Tulita District of the Sahtu Settlement Region. | |
Statistics Canada divides the territory into six census divisions. These areas exist solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government of their own. They are listed below with their most populous municipality on the right:
Prior to the 2011 census, there were two census divisions. The former census division of Inuvik was considerably larger than the administrative region of the same name.
Prior to the division of the NWT and the creation of Nunavut in 1999, there were five census divisions. Their boundaries were altered somewhat as part of the adjustment.
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately 1,127,711.92 km2 (435,412.01 sq mi) and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of the three territories in Northern Canada. Its estimated population as of the second quarter of 2024 is 44,920. Yellowknife is the capital, most populous community, and the only city in the territory; its population was 20,340 as of the 2021 census. It became the territorial capital in 1967, following recommendations by the Carrothers Commission.
Northern Canada, colloquially the North or the Territories, is the vast northernmost region of Canada, variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three territories of Canada: Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. This area covers about 48 per cent of Canada's total land area, but has less than 0.5 per cent of Canada's population.
Inuvik is the only town in the Inuvik Region, and the third largest community in Canada's Northwest Territories. Located in what is sometimes called the Beaufort Delta Region, it serves as its administrative and service centre and is home to federal, territorial, and Indigenous government offices, along with the regional hospital and airport.
Aklavik is a hamlet located in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. Until 1961, with a population over 1,500, the community served as the regional administrative centre for the territorial government.
Inuvialuktun comprises several Inuit language varieties spoken in the northern Northwest Territories by Canadian Inuit who call themselves Inuvialuit. Some dialects and sub-dialects are also spoken in Nunavut.
The Inuvialuit or Western Canadian Inuit are Inuit who live in the western Canadian Arctic region. They, like all other Inuit, are descendants of the Thule who migrated eastward from Alaska. Their homeland – the Inuvialuit Settlement Region – covers the Arctic Ocean coastline area from the Alaskan border, east through the Beaufort Sea and beyond the Amundsen Gulf which includes some of the western Canadian Arctic Islands, as well as the inland community of Aklavik and part of Yukon. The land was demarked in 1984 by the Inuvialuit Final Agreement.
Fort McPherson is a hamlet located in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is located on the east bank of the Peel River and is 121 km (75 mi) south of Inuvik on the Dempster Highway.
Fort Smith Region was a former Statistics Canada census division, one of two in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was abolished in the 2011 census, along with the other census division of Inuvik Region, and the land area of the Northwest Territories was divided into new census divisions named Region 1, Region 2, Region 3, Region 4, Region 5, Region 6.
The Inuvik Region or Beaufort Delta Region is one of five administrative regions in the Northwest Territories of Canada. According to Municipal and Community Affairs the region consists of eight communities with the regional office situated in Inuvik. Most of the communities are in the Beaufort Sea area and are a mixture of Inuit and First Nations.
The Inuvialuit Settlement Region, abbreviated as ISR, located in Canada's western Arctic, was designated in 1984 in the Inuvialuit Final Agreement by the Government of Canada for the Inuvialuit people. It spans 90,650 km2 (35,000 sq mi) of land, mostly above the tree line, and includes several subregions: the Beaufort Sea, the Mackenzie River delta, the northern portion of Yukon, and the northwest portion of the Northwest Territories. The ISR includes both Crown Lands and Inuvialuit Private Lands. Most of the ISR is represented by Nunakput, the territorial electoral district, meaning "our land" in Inuvialuktun.
Inuit Nunangat refers to the land, water, and ice of the homeland of Inuit in Canada. This Arctic homeland consists of four northern Canadian regions called the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, the territory Nunavut (ᓄᓇᕗᑦ), Nunavik (ᓄᓇᕕᒃ) in northern Quebec, and Nunatsiavut of Newfoundland and Labrador.
The Arctic Council Indigenous Peoples’ Secretariat (IPS) is a secretariat for the six international Indigenous organizations affiliated with the eight-nation Arctic Council. The IPS does not represent indigenous peoples or their organizations, but assists those organizations in presenting their causes, and helps to disseminate information among them. IPS was established in 1994 under the auspices of the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS). It was around the same time that the category of Permanent Participants was being developed and applied to the three indigenous peoples’ organizations then observers in the AEPS. When the Arctic Council was established in 1996, both the Permanent Participants and IPS was reinserted into the new intergovernmental framework. Since commencing business in 1994, the role of the secretariat has been to facilitate contributions from the Permanent Participants to the cooperation of the eight Arctic states and to assist the Permanent Participants in performing, mainly communicational task.
Inuvik Region was a former Statistics Canada census division, one of two in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was abolished in the 2011 census, along with the other census division of Fort Smith Region, and the land area of the Northwest Territories was divided into new census divisions named Region 1, Region 2, Region 3, Region 4, Region 5, Region 6.
Region 1 is the name of a Statistics Canada census division, one of six in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was introduced in the 2011 census, along with Regions 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, resulting in the abolition of the former census divisions of Fort Smith Region and Inuvik Region. Unlike in some other provinces, census divisions do not reflect the organization of local government in the Northwest Territories. These areas exist solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government of their own.
Region 2 is the name of a Statistics Canada census division, one of six in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was introduced in the 2011 census, along with Regions 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6, resulting in the abolition of the former census divisions of Fort Smith Region and Inuvik Region. Unlike in some other provinces, census divisions do not reflect the organization of local government in the Northwest Territories. These areas exist solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government of their own.
Region 5 is the name of a Statistics Canada census division, one of six in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was introduced in the 2011 census, along with Regions 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6, resulting in the abolition of the former census divisions of Fort Smith Region and Inuvik Region. Unlike in some other provinces, census divisions do not reflect the organization of local government in the Northwest Territories. These areas exist solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government of their own.
Region 4 is the name of a Statistics Canada census division, one of six in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was introduced in the 2011 census, along with Regions 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6, resulting in the abolition of the former census divisions of Fort Smith Region and Inuvik Region. Unlike in some other provinces, census divisions do not reflect the organization of local government in the Northwest Territories. These areas exist solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government of their own.
The Indigenous peoples of Yukon are ethnic groups who, prior to European contact, occupied the former countries now collectively known as Yukon. While most First Nations in the Canadian territory are a part of the wider Dene Nation, there are Tlingit and Métis nations that blend into the wider spectrum of indigeneity across Canada. Traditionally hunter-gatherers, indigenous peoples and their associated nations retain close connections to the land, the rivers and the seasons of their respective countries or homelands. Their histories are recorded and passed down the generations through oral traditions. European contact and invasion brought many changes to the native cultures of Yukon including land loss and non-traditional governance and education. However, indigenous people in Yukon continue to foster their connections with the land in seasonal wage labour such as fishing and trapping. Today, indigenous groups aim to maintain and develop indigenous languages, traditional or culturally-appropriate forms of education, cultures, spiritualities and indigenous rights.
The Gwichʼin Tribal Council is a First Nations organization representing the Gwichʼin people in the Mackenzie River Delta of the Northwest Territories. It was created in 1992 with the final ratification of the Gwichʼin Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement with the Government of Canada. Negotiations to achieve a Final Agreement, and thus, Gwichʼin self-government, are ongoing.
The Beaufort Delta Divisional Education Council or Beaufort-Delta Divisional Education Council is the public school board for the Inuvik Region, identical to Region 1, a census division in the Northwest Territories. Located in Inuvik the education council represents nine schools in eight communities.
