2021-22 Departmental Results Report - Operating Context

The Government of Canada created Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) to aid in reconciliation and renew the relationship with Indigenous Peoples. ISC supports the recognition of rights, respect, co-operation, and partnership as part of the journey towards reconciliation. The goal is to improve access to high-quality services, socio-economic conditions, quality of life, and safety for Indigenous communities. This approach is threaded into ISC's mandate to advance systemic change towards self-determination and self-government of Indigenous Peoples by supporting and empowering Indigenous Peoples to control delivery of their services.

Historically, Indigenous Peoples have experienced disadvantages through the context of systemic and institutional racism. The Government of Canada recognizes that the relationship between the Crown and Indigenous Peoples has been built on colonial structures, which have contributed to unacceptable socio-economic gaps. While day-to-day realities in Indigenous communities must continue to be addressed directly, there must also be a path to systematic change.

In 2021-22, the locating of unmarked graves and burial sites near former residential schools underscored the need to move faster on the path of reconciliation with First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples. ISC continues to actively support the implementation of the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), the Clerk's Call to Action, the Many Voices One Mind report, the Calls to Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Girls (MMIWG) and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. ISC's advancement towards reconciliation is focused on the following interconnected priority areas in partnership with Indigenous Peoples: advancing health, supporting families, helping build sustainable communities, and supporting Indigenous communities in self-determination.

Through these challenges, the health and well-being of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis remained ISC's priority while supporting community responses to COVID-19. Throughout the course of the pandemic, Indigenous Peoples and ISC have adapted to new realities. The pandemic highlighted the necessity and urgency of ISC's work, exposing challenges in accessing and providing health care. ISC has drawn on lessons learned from the pandemic and continued to support flexible, Indigenous-led measures to improve the health and socio-economic outcomes of Indigenous communities.

These efforts are only the beginning. In partnership, ISC and Indigenous Peoples will shape the composition of, and services offered by ISC, all the while recognizing the rights of Indigenous Peoples and the distinctions among First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nations and communities. The goal is Indigenous-led design, delivery, and control of services.