Feds add $204M for anti-pandemic measures in Indigenous communities

Ottawa will spend an additional $204 million targeted at child care, education and infrastructure to help Indigenous communities fight the COVID-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Friday.

Trudeau said the government is spending $120 million to support early learning and child-care facilities in First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities during the pandemic.

“Access to safe and culturally relevant early learning and child care is essential to the recovery of Indigenous communities from COVID-19,” Trudeau said.

The new funding will support facilities in Indigenous communities in hiring additional staff and offering training for their teams.

The government is also spending $25 million to help Indigenous post-secondary institutions with increased costs related to the pandemic.

“This will help retain staff, adapt courses for online learning and implement public health and safety measures like additional handwashing stations and safe space barriers,” Trudeau said.

He also announced $59 million in funding to improve infrastructure on First Nations to meet COVID-19 health and safety standards.

The new money is on top of more than $2.2 billion the federal government has already allocated to help Indigenous and northern communities get through the health crisis.

Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller said the announcement brings the government funding for Indigenous communities and organizations during COVID-19 to almost $2.5 billion.