Manitoba First Nations and Indigenous organizations are receiving $1.9 million collectively this fiscal year to support nation-rebuilding efforts, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett announced in Winnipeg Feb. 13.
The money from the department’s nation rebuilding program is going to Norway House Cree Nation, the Island Lake Tribal Council and Treaty No. 5 First Nations in Northern Manitoba, as well as to Treaty No. 2 and Treaty No. 1 First Nations in the province’s southern half.
“First Nations are working hard to build strong and self-reliant Indigenous nations,” said Bennett in a news release. “Nation-rebuilding investments accelerate the path to self-determination by providing the resources for reconstituting nations and creating a governance of their own choosing. Reconciliation requires renewing the relationship with Indigenous peoples based upon the recognition of rights, respect, cooperation and partnership.”
Nation-rebuilding program funding will be available for five years beginning in the 2018-19 budget year and proposals approved for funding support capacity development as well as aggregation and nation-rebuilding activities that include more than one Indigenous group of the same nation.
The 1996 report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples defined Aboriginal nations as a sizeable body of Aboriginal people with a shared sense of identity that makes up the predominant population in a certain territory or collection of territories. The commission recommended that such nations begin to create institutions with the breadth and capacity to take on the exercise of rights, including self-government.
The nation-rebuilding program aims to help Indigenous nations re-establish themselves, take on greater responsibilities, foster a sense of unity amongst their citizens and provide input on legislation, policies and programs so they are more reflective of Indigenous perspectives. Program funding is available to First Nations, Métis groups, and national and regional Indigenous organizations. It can be used for activities such as workshops, the establishment of advisory committees, community engagement, constitution development, and heritage or governance projects as well as traditional ceremonial offerings, among others. The funding can be used to cover salaries, accommodations, required hardware and software, administrative costs, supplies, travel costs and facility rentals for workshops or conferences, as well as other associated costs.
Proposals were submitted for review last September and the Crown-Indigenous relations department said in October that it received proposals exceeding the amount of available funding for this year. The maximum amount that can be paid out to one recipient in a single fiscal year under the program is $1.5 million.
