The signing of an agreement by Whitecap Dakota First Nation and the federal minister of indigenous and northern affairs is the next step toward self-governance for the First Nation.

Whitecap Dakota Chief Darcy Bear and federal Indigenous and Northern Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett signed an agreement in principle Thursday on the First Nation.

Bennett said research shows self-governed communities are successful.

“The communities that are in charge of making their own decisions on health, education, justice, economy, all of it, they do way better,” she said. “The youth do way better in all of the metrics that you would want to measure.”

Further negotiations are needed to bring Whitecap out from under the Indian Act, which will give the First Nation more control over its own community.

“We want to break free from (the Indian Act) and be contributing citizens,” Chief Bear said. “We want jobs and opportunities, and hope like every other Canadian citizen does, and this is the path forward."

The implementation of a final agreement must still take place. The First Nation says it hopes that process will be complete by 2020.