Murray Wood: The Art of the CUSMA Deal
Insults, complaints that Canada is so mean, warnings the U.S. doesn't need us. It's all standard operating procedure. Th...
OTTAWA — The federal government is promising $4.3 billion for First Nations education, Inuit food security and Indigenous child welfare in its spring economic update.
Much of the funding cited in the statement has already been announced, while funding to build more homes in Indigenous communities is being reallocated from other areas of government.
The document says the funding will help “empower healthy, thriving Indigenous communities.”
The federal government is setting aside $601 million this year for on-reserve elementary and secondary education “that meets the needs of students so that First Nations youth can participate fully in Canada’s skilled workforce.”
Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak has long called for more supports to help First Nations youth enter the skilled trades and says Canada relies too much on outside labour.
Another $700 million is being allocated over six years to implement a law that affirms First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities have the right to control their own child welfare systems.
“Supporting Indigenous-led services and supports rooted in their unique cultures is essential to this government’s commitment to advance reconciliation,” the spring economic update says.
“It ensures critical services like education, family services, social services and community governance meet the needs of Indigenous families, communities and individuals.”
Ottawa is committing another $6.3 million to the Northern Isolated Communities Initiatives fund — which helps support food security in Inuit communities — and $794 million to support non-insured health benefits for Inuit and First Nations, including drugs, dental care and mental health counselling.
The bulk of the Indigenous funding in the update — $2.8 billion — is being reallocated from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to a number of departments to support Indigenous housing providers.
The Assembly of First Nations has estimated the cost of closing the infrastructure gap in First Nations communities at $349 billion. Former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s government committed to closing that gap.
Many First Nations communities struggle with a severe shortage of housing, a lack of internet connectivity and crumbling roads. In a 2024 joint report with Indigenous Services Canada, the AFN said closing the First Nations infrastructure gap could generate $635 billion in economic activity.
The document makes 94 references to Indigenous Peoples in chapters touching on the critical minerals strategy, the major projects office and plans to modernize the energy grid.
The federal government is also promising $8 million for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and $1 million to support the National Family and Survivors Circle.
NDP MP Leah Gazan said that funding is nowhere near enough to help combat the problem of violence targeting Indigenous women and girls.
“This government has no interest in reconciliation. It certainly doesn’t have any interest in tacking the ongoing, the growing violence against Indigenous women, girls and gender-diverse people, and this spring economic statement is a testament,” Gazan told The Canadian Press outside the House of Commons on Tuesday.
“They need to come to the table, they need to meet with Indigenous women and girls. And they need to properly fund our organizations and advocacy groups and family members, and they need to stop playing games on our lives.”
Another $59 million is being allocated to address the legacy of residential schools this year, with the same amount earmarked for next year, while $40 million is budgeted for supporting Indigenous rights negotiations.
Compared to 2023, the federal funding available for claims research will be cut in half. First Nations have warned that cuts to that funding would undermine their ability to hold the government accountable for historic wrongs against their communities.
The $4 million earmarked for claims research falls well short of the $35 million First Nations leaders have requested.
“The planned reduction to $4 million in April 2026 will critically impair essential research work nationwide and further delay the resolution of lawful claims which will impede your government’s ability to build partnerships with First Nations,” Jody Woods, research director at the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, wrote in a March letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney.
“Consistent with Canada’s obligations under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, decisions affecting First Nations must be developed transparently and in full partnership with First Nations.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 28, 2026.
Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press
