Indigenous Services Canada: 2024-25 Departmental Plan at a glance
A departmental plan describes a department's priorities, plans, and associated costs for the upcoming three fiscal years.
Table of contents
- Indigenous Services Canada's (ISC) mandate and operating context
- Minister Hajdu's mandate letter
Key priorities
- Continue to support and advance Indigenous health and well-being, including through the full implementation of Joyce's Principle to address Anti-Indigenous racism in health systems, improved access to essential primary care services in remote and isolated communities, and the move towards holistic, Indigenous-led models of care.
- Continue to ensure Indigenous children get the care and support they need to thrive and address gaps in service by fully implementing Jordan's Principle for First Nations children, working with Inuit partners to co-develop a new model for the Inuit Child First Initiative, and continuing analysis towards a cohesive approach to programs, services, and funding to help meet the needs of Métis children.
- Work with Inuit partners to eliminate tuberculosis across Inuit Nunangat by 2030.
- Continue to invest in distinctions-based Mental Health and Wellness approaches to meet the needs of First Nations, Inuit and the Métis Nation, including culturally appropriate substance use prevention and treatment services and trauma-informed cultural and emotional supports.
- Co-develop policy options and an implementation plan for the First Nations and Inuit components of a new and more holistic long-term and continuing care framework.
- Continue co-development with Indigenous organizations on long-term, distinctions-based funding frameworks, and conduct a five-year legislative review of the provisions and operations of An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children, youth and families in collaboration with Indigenous Peoples.
- Aim to close the infrastructure gap by 2030 by supporting in community decision-making regarding First Nations infrastructure projects that include high priority repairs and renovations, multi-year capital projects, continued implementation of education facilities projects and existing housing programs, and advancing new proposed First Nations water legislation while continuing to work to eliminate long-term drinking water advisories on reserve.
- Launch an evaluation of the New Fiscal Relationship 10-Year Grant and co-develop policy options for governance capacity building program reforms.
- Support Indigenous-led policy development for an Economic Reconciliation Framework and respond to key policy priorities advanced by Indigenous partners. ISC will also ensure that business support programs are as inclusive as possible by providing capacity supports, particularly for small and remote First Nation and Inuit communities until 2027-2028.
- Advance the priorities of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation partners and communities to reclaim jurisdiction in the areas that matter to them, such as working to implement national and/or regionally-specific funding enhancements beyond provincial education comparability.
- Continue to support First Nation-led processes to transition away from the Indian Act by exploring alternative processes for topics such as continuing to address inequities in registration and band membership.
ISC is committed to honouring the duty to consult with Indigenous Peoples and actively supporting the implementation of the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), the Calls for Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Girls (MMIWG) and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UN Declaration) (PDF) through the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (UN Declaration Act) in the design and delivery of all programs and policies both now and in the future. Existing programs within each service area are actively contributing to these commitments and details can be found under the "Related Government Priorities" sections of this report.
Refocusing government spending
In Budget 2023, the government committed to reducing spending by $14.1 billion over the next five years, starting in 2023–24, and by $4.1 billion annually after that.
As part of meeting this commitment, Indigenous Services Canada is planning the following spending reductions.
- 2024-25: $64,716,653
- 2025-26: $108,603,653
- 2026-27 and after: $170,702,653
Indigenous Services Canada will achieve these reductions by doing the following:
- Internal Services and Operational Efficiencies
- Public Servant Travel Reductions
- Departmental Transformation
- Reducing grants and contributions following discussions with partners, by targeting areas that will minimize impacts on communities and/or in areas where the funding has not been fully utilized.
The figures in this departmental plan reflect these reductions. ISC will continue to engage with its Indigenous partners to identify future funding needs.
Highlights
A Departmental Results Framework consists of an organization's core responsibilities, the results it plans to achieve, and the performance indicators that measure progress toward these results.
Core Responsibility: Indigenous Well-Being and Self-Determination
Departmental results:
Service Area: Health
- Departmental Result 1: Indigenous Peoples are physically well
- Departmental Result 2: Indigenous Peoples are mentally well
- Departmental Result 3: Indigenous Peoples have access to quality federally-funded health services
Service Area: Children and Families
- Departmental Result 4: Indigenous Peoples are culturally safe and socially well
Service Area: Education
- Departmental Result 5: Indigenous students are progressing in their education
Service Area: Infrastructure and Environments
- Departmental Result 6: Indigenous communities have sustainable land management and infrastructure
Service Area: Economic Development
- Departmental Result 7: Indigenous communities are progressing in their business and economic growth
Service Area: Governance
- Departmental Result 8: Indigenous communities have governance capacity and support for self-determination
Planned spending: $21,038,891,053
Planned human resources: 7,459
Indigenous Services Canada was created in November 2017, and was established through the Department of Indigenous Services Act, which came into force in July 2019. The department is mandated to ensure that First Nations, Inuit and Métis people have access to eligible services that address socio-economic gaps in health and well-being between Indigenous individuals and other Canadians. The department recognizes that these socio-economic gaps exist as a result of historical and ongoing systemic racism and discrimination rooted in the impacts of colonialism.
As ISC works to fulfill its core responsibility, it is also striving to do its part towards the Government of Canada's goal to right past and current wrongs and renew the relationship with Indigenous Peoples. This goal will be realized through the gradual transfer of departmental responsibilities to Indigenous organizations, along with co-development, engagement, and collaboration with Indigenous Peoples, provinces and territories, and by recognizing and promoting Indigenous ways of knowing, being and doing. Core services linked to advancing health and well-being, strengthening families, progressing education, helping build sustainable communities, increasing economic development, and supporting Indigenous communities in self-determination must not only be delivered, but must also be Indigenous-led and culturally-relevant.
In 2024-25, the department will continue to address systemic racism within the health system and contribute to advancing pathways for Indigenous Peoples to have greater control over the health services in their communities. Activities will include continued support for health transformation initiatives, implementation of the Indigenous Health Equity Fund, and further co-development of distinctions-based Indigenous health legislative and policy options informed by the spirit of Joyce's Principle, which aims to guarantee for all Indigenous people the right of equitable access, without any discrimination, to all social and health services, as well as the right to enjoy the best possible physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health.
ISC will prioritize efforts to improve access to high-quality health services and reduce socio-economic gaps in the area of health by enhancing the safety and security of primary care nurses through the implementation of policies, training and best practices that will help to recruit and retain healthcare talent in communities. The department will also engage with First Nation and Inuit communities to support distinctions-based mental health and wellness approaches, and identify health emergencies and the needed supports to address issues related to persistent outbreaks of disease such as tuberculosis, exposure to environmental contaminants, and the health impacts of climate change.
Work is continuing toward dismantling colonial structures within the child and family service delivery model to provide culturally appropriate, child centered, community directed models of care. Prevention services funding will continue via the ongoing incremental implementation of an expanded program on long-term reform. Capacity development funding for Indigenous communities exploring, or seeking to, exercise jurisdiction over child and family services via the framework of the Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families is available to support the development of Indigenous child and family service legislation, systems, and programs. Canada has made significant investments in supporting the exercise of jurisdiction, committing a total of approximately $1.4 billion over 10 years to seven communities that have chosen to exercise jurisdiction through the framework of the Act.
ISC's ongoing work to decrease socio-economic gaps in education will involve continued support for First Nations control of First Nations elementary and secondary education, the transfer of responsibilities, devolution, and ongoing support for First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation post-secondary education. Regional education agreements will support First Nations self-determination, and pathways to the transfer of responsibilities with education jurisdiction supported through self-governing agreements and modern treaties. Continued implementation of distinctions-based Indigenous post-secondary education strategies will support First Nation, Inuit and Métis Nation students to have greater access to and achieve higher levels of post-secondary education. Additionally, the department will continue to work towards implementation for First Nations-led development of long-term regional post-secondary education models that respect First Nations control over First Nations post-secondary education.
Ongoing activities that support planning, design, construction, renovation, acquisition and operations and maintenance of community infrastructure will help to decrease socio-economic gaps in community infrastructure so that First Nations can build healthy, safe and prosperous communities. ISC will seek to gain a better understanding of the immediate needs of First Nations and begin addressing them through solutions outlined by First Nations engagement activities so that the result is reliable and critical community-led infrastructure that is built upon community planning and addresses local priorities. The department will also continue to support First Nations-led organizations in their engagements with rights holders, as well as capacity building related to the transfer of responsibilities with respect to housing and infrastructure service delivery, in express support of self-determination.
The department will work to address the impacts of colonialism on sustainable development and management of reserve lands and environment by supporting First Nations to take on greater control of their lands. ISC and partners at the Lands Advisory Board and Resource Centre will continue to support the growing number of communities that have chosen to reclaim jurisdictional control over their reserve lands, natural resources and environments through the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management. First Nations' capacity to administer and develop their lands under the Indian Act will be strengthened through the Reserve Land and Environment Management Program.
ISC will seek to address the impacts of colonialism that undermined Indigenous economic prosperity by improving support for Indigenous businesses and communities to thrive. The achievements projected for 2024-25 under the Aboriginal Entrepreneurship Program will support Indigenous communities to progress in their business and economic growth by advancing capacity building, professional development, commercialization of Canadian innovations, and further fostering the entrepreneurial culture within Indigenous communities. The department will also lead the work to increase access to procurement opportunities for First Nations, Inuit and Métis businesses through an Indigenous-informed Transformative Indigenous Procurement Strategy.
In 2024-25, ISC will continue to work to dismantle the impacts of colonialism in legislation, policies and practices by supporting Indigenous self-determination and the inherent right to self-government, advancing capacity development, facilitating Canada's commitment to transition away from the Indian Act, supporting Indigenous control of the design and delivery of services, and managing relationships with co-development partners:
- Barriers to implementing the plans and priorities of communities will be addressed through supports such as the Community Development Wrap-Around Initiative. Through this initiative, the department is working alongside 22 First Nation communities to provide wrap-around support in implementing community identified priorities through the leveraging of partnerships and by bridging project gaps through flexible funding.
- Building data capacity for Indigenous-led data strategies and data sovereignty will help design and deliver programs, policies, and services that reflect the unique histories and lived experiences of Indigenous Peoples so they can tell their own stories.
- Predictable funding provided through the New Fiscal Relationship Grant will provide the means for eligible First Nations to design and deliver those services in line with community priorities.
- Indian Act alternative processes will be explored through a range of initiatives and approaches, including policy and legislative initiatives that advance self-government, rights-based negotiations, and the transfer of responsibilities.
Recognizing there is so much more work to be done to redress past and current harms that continue to impact today, ISC will concentrate on the ongoing work towards addressing colonial structures, systemic racism, and discrimination in the areas of Indigenous well-being and self-determination in a tangible way so that Indigenous Peoples can succeed and prosper, and the relationship with Indigenous Peoples can be renewed.
More information about Indigenous Services Canada can be found in the full Departmental plan.