FARGO, N.D. – Gov. Doug Burgum today joined Consul General of Canada Khawar Nasim during an event in Fargo to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary and North Dakota’s strong relationship with its neighbor and trade partner to the north.
North Dakota sells more goods to Canada – $3.2 billion last year – than to all other countries combined and is a major partner in the energy sector, Burgum noted. An estimated 28,500 jobs in North Dakota depend on trade and investment with Canada, and tourists from Canada have a significant impact on North Dakota’s economy, with vacation spending of $257 million annually.
“It’s a great pleasure to extend congratulations to Canada on its sesquicentennial. Our shared histories, values and many years of collaboration and partnership bode well for a continued strong relationship as business partners and friends,” Burgum said.
In a gift exchange, Khawar presented the governor with a series of paintings by Simone McLeod, a Cree-Ojibway poet and painter born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and member of the Pasqua First Nation in Saskatchewan – the two provinces that border North Dakota. Burgum, who is involved in a ranching partnership in the Badlands of western North Dakota, presented Khawar with a cowboy rope art basket handmade by Roy Riehl in Raleigh, N.D.
Khawar was named Canada’s Consul General in Minneapolis in July 2016, with accreditation to Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.
The Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber of Commerce hosted today’s celebration at the Avalon Events Center in Fargo.