Ottawa will renew funds for the first Inuit Child First initiative for another year.
The Minister of Indigenous Relations Crown, Gary Anandasangaree, announced that the program will be renewed for another year by signing the implementation contract of the Nuevo Nunavut Agreement in Ottawa.
The announcement was received with applause by the attendees in the event, including Natan Obed, president of the National Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami.
Inuit Child First initiative provides funds for social, health and educational support for all Inuit children in Canada, similar to support provided to children from the first nations through the Jordan principle. All children who are recognized by an Inuit land claim organization.
The program financing would be depleted on March 31. Local and national Inuit leaders have expressed concern about the impact that the end of the program could have on children.
Anandasangaree said that he and others in Ottawa have heard those concerns.
“This is something, once again, one of the very important things that the prime minister concludes as he advances tomorrow,” he told those who attended the event. In addition to Obed, they included Nunavut Premier PJ Akeogok and Jeremy Tunraluk, president of Nunavut Tunngikik Inc., which represents Nunavut Inuit.
The minister refused to answer a question about whether the first Inuit Child initiative would make changes in eligibility that are similar to those recently made at the beginning of Jordan.
After the event, Anandasangaree told journalists that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau worked directly with the Minister of Finance to ensure funds.
“We wanted to make sure there were no gaps in the services,” he said. “There was a lot of work for this to happen.”
However, Anandasangaree said that more work should be done to obtain funds for the program beyond the renewal of one year.
In a statement after the announcement, Nunavut Tunngovik Inc. thanked the federal government for extending the program. The organization also said that it would like to see Inuit to have a role in the design of a long -term version of the program.
