The Way Forward

(A day late, here is the final segment of Federal Government Funding to First Nations
The Facts, the Myths, and the Way Forward.)

Process

"... the Federal Government states that funding to First Nations is intended to provide comparable services, meet lawful obligations and support self-government. However, the funds that First Nations currently receive are insufficient to achieve the goals for which they are intended.

"Waste is not the issue; process, sustainability and jurisdiction are the issues.

"No matter how much is spent by the Federal Government, there will always be opportunities to improve the effectiveness of that spending.

"... there are 14 different departments and agencies of the Federal Government that provide some funding to First Nations. [Personally, I find it hard enough when I have to deal with one!]

"Both in her December 2002 report on Streamlining First Nations Reporting to Federal Organizations and in her December 2003 report on Economic Development of First Nations Communities: Institutional Arrangements, the Auditor General identified opportunities to integrate and streamline administrative arrangements between first Nations and the Federal Government. The 2002 report identified a minimum of 168 different reports required by the four main funding organizations. As pointed out earlier, these requirements are especially burdensome when one considers the small size of most communities.

"Problems cited in the Auditor General’s 2002 report include:

• overlap and duplication among the required reports;
• limited use being made of reports;
• reporting requirements dictated with insufficient consultation;
• information reported not being used to set funding levels;
• reports that do not reflect community priorities;
• insufficient feedback to First Nations; and,
• a lack of information on program performance or results.
  

"The 2003 report identifies similar issues of complexity and administrative burden. That report states that: “federal support for institutional arrangements is not yet sufficient to help First Nations overcome barriers and take control of their economic development. Federal organizations need to:

• consolidate the administrative requirements and improve the adaptability of business support programs;
• help First Nations identify and build consistent and fair institutional arrangements in a timely way; and,
• use a more horizontal approach for economic development programming”
  

"In its response to this report, the Government of Canada agreed to its recommendations and has committed to undertaking such changes."

"The reports of the Auditor General have examined just two areas of the many in which such an approach would be a distinct advantage. This paper has also identified protracted litigation and delay in resolving both comprehensive and specific claims as perhaps the most egregious areas of waste.

"... integrated and streamlined processes [must] not leave programs open to abuse and that, where problems arise, appropriate remedies are identified. Therefore, the Federal Government should work with First Nations, in consultation with the Auditor General of Canada, to create a general audit function for First Nations.

"Clearly, integration and streamlining will make program delivery cheaper. In addition, putting an end to administrative barriers to progress is a necessary first step in unlocking the positive
and constructive work of First Nations themselves, allowing those most directly affected to seize control of their own destinies and build a productive future."

Sustainability

"... funding levels [to First Nations] are declining when examined against population growth and inflation.

While "legislation ... protects core program funding to provinces through the [Canadian Health and Social Transfers] CHST, core [funding to] First Nations programs [is] “discretionary”, [this] must be changed. This legislation means that the Federal Government need not keep First Nations funding current with inflation and population pressures, nor is it protected from being transferred from core services to meet other needs. This is a glaring inequity.

"The solution is funding that meets need, with a formula for increases to match both inflation and population growth. This is what is meant by sustainable funding and it is essential to counter the otherwise inevitable negative outcomes.

These outcomes include:

• worsening of health, education, housing and other environmental factors
• "no reliable predictability of conditions such as is necessary to support a positive economic climate for investment"
• "greater political instability"

Jurisdiction

"First Nations jurisdiction in those areas that are essential to economic self-sufficiency, social health and political stability stems from the inherent right to self-determination.

According to an important study of First Nations in Canada by members of the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development, there are three factors that are critical to economic self-sufficiency. Following extensive research over the past fifteen years, researchers have been able to demonstrate that economic development is closely linked to the existence of the following:

• practical sovereignty, meaning genuine decision-making power
  over internal affairs, governance, resources, institutions, and
  development strategies;
• capable governing institutions, which exercise power effectively,
  responsibly, and reliably; and,
• cultural match, which are formal institutions of government that
  match Indigenous conceptions of how authority should be
  organized and exercised.

"On the social side of the equation, according to a ground-breaking study by psychologists at the University of British Columbia, the presence or absence of certain factors have a significant role as predictors of suicide among youth. Each of these relate specifically to the degree of self-government being exercised at the local level, the control over institutions and the cultural sensitivity with which those institutions are run.

"The six factors are: the attainment of self-government; the pursuit of land claims; band control over education; band control over health services; the presence of cultural facilities; and, band control over police and fire services.

"Looked at in the inverse, not only does self-government produce success, but the cost of the status quo is unsustainable. Those who are concerned about costs to the Canadian taxpayer of maintaining the current system would do well to read the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, 1996:

“The first and largest cost results from the economic marginalization
of Aboriginal people. We have shown that under better conditions
Aboriginal people could contribute an additional $5.8 billion to the
Canadian economy."

"... the way forward is through investing in self-government. That will allow First Nations to
develop economically and to create services that are sensitive and responsive to the needs of the communities. However, greater investment is needed to make self-government a reality, to develop the appropriate institutions and to build the capacity needed to carry out the daily business of a First Nation. Investment is also required to create a favourable climate for economic development and to build toward sustainable self-sufficiency on reserves.

"Self-government is the hope for the future. It is critical to both economic and social progress. It is self-government that will lead First Nations out of the negatively reinforcing cycle of poverty that has marked our history since the arrival of the Europeans. Full funding and recognition of First Nations jurisdiction will break this cycle. Investment is cheaper than the status quo."

Conclusion

"More cost-effective programs and services and more effective governance can be
facilitated through:

• integrating programs and streamlining processes to remove overlap
  and accelerate decision-making;
• improving dispute resolution mechanisms that recognize the
  inherent injustice in delaying the settlement of lawful claims and
  meeting historic treaty obligations;
• amending reporting requirements to provide relevant information
  about outcomes to the communities involved while reducing the
  burden on them;
• inverting accountability practices to allow First Nations governments
  to account to their members first and other governments
  second;
• enhancing accountability by establishing a general audit function
  for First Nations;
• establishing sustainable funding, with an escalator formula that
  mirrors the true cost drivers of need, inflation and population
  growth;
• providing sufficient funding to support the development and
  implementation of First Nations governments; and,
• establishing fully inter-dependent governments, within a constitutional
  framework which appropriately reallocates governance
  jurisdictions according to the rights and capacities of each
  government to discharge them best.
  

"These are the choices will help to stem the vicious cycle of poverty that continues to drive costs higher. These are the steps that will serve people best and enable real progress to be made. These will not be wasted dollars. This is what is meant by the term self-government.

"It is time now for real, transformative change. The myths can be put behind us. The
way forward is evident."

I hope that by sharing this information, we can begin to understand the current context and desires of First Nations peoples. I believe that if we are educated and vocal, we can help to make a difference within our lifetimes.

Colleen