New Brunswick's Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq have settled a land claim with the federal government.

The First Nation's chief, Noah Augustine, and federal Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl met in Red Bank to sign the agreement Friday morning.

The First Nation will be compensated $1.4 million for about 66 hectares of land that was taken in the early 1900s.

The money can be used over the next 30 years to buy up to 120 hectares of land within an area negotiated between the First Nation and the federal government.

The land will be used by the community for business purposes.

During a June 14 referendum, 70 per cent of the eligible Metepenagiag members who voted were in favour of the agreement.

The settlement is crucial to developing Metepenagiag's economy and to forming private-sector partnerships, Augustine said.

"When we establish the economy and we make those investments into our community then we can move towards changing that dependency, that mentality of dependency that exists in most First Nations across Canada," he said.

Metepenagiag, also known as Red Bank, is located near Miramichi and has a population of 520 people living on and off the reserve.