It will be a four-year journey but the major players have committed more than $8 million to fund the North American Indigenous games in Regina.

They will be held in July of 2014.

The process began in 2010, when the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations submitted the winning bid to host the games.

Today, an official signing ceremony take place at the First Nations University where funding was pledged from the city, the province and the federal government.

Regina will provide a million dollars of its own, while the province and the federal government will each contribute $3.5 million.

Northern Saskatchewan MP, Rob Clark, sees it as an investment.

“It’s just a positive influence because you see positive role models out there.”

Regina Mayor Pat Fiacco agrees:

“In this particular case I don’t think it’s a question of dollars and sense. It’s an investment, in what I believe, is the future of our province; in Canada for that matter.”

The FSIN has committed 135 thousand dollars to the games.