Nunavut suffers second-worst year of suicide

Nunavut endured its second-worst year for suicides in 2006, when 29 residents took their lives.

Yet despite this, and the fact that Nunavut’s suicide rate remains a staggering 11 times higher than the Canada-wide average, the territory still has no suicide prevention strategy.

The World Health Organization says such a strategy is an important first step towards combating what it calls a preventable disaster.

In contrast, Greenland and Alaska each have suicide prevention policies. Both jurisdictions also track suicide attempts in some manner. Nunavut does not.