Archived - Urban Aboriginal Strategy

Name of Horizontal Initiative: Urban Aboriginal Strategy

Name of lead department(s): Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (AANDC)

Lead department Program: Under AANDC's program activity architecture, Urban Aboriginal Strategy is categorized under the Strategic Outcome entitled "The Land and Economy". The Program Activity for the Initiative is entitled Urban Aboriginal Participation.

Start date of the Horizontal Initiative: April, 2007

End date of the Horizontal Initiative: Ongoing

Total federal funding allocation (start to end date): 13.5 million annually (total G&C and O&M) on-going

Description of the Horizontal Initiative (including funding agreement): The Urban Aboriginal Strategy (UAS) was developed in 1997 to help respond to the needs of Aboriginal people living in key urban centres. Through the UAS, the Government of Canada provides flexible seed funding and seeks to partner with other levels of government, Aboriginal and community organizations, and the private sector to support initiatives that increase the economic and social participation of Aboriginal People living in urban centres.

In 2012 the Government of Canada extended the UAS and transferred three urban Aboriginal programs from Canadian Heritage to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada: the Aboriginal Friendship Centres Program, Cultural Connections for Aboriginal Youth and Young Canada Works for Aboriginal Urban Youth. The transfer of the programming will allow for greater focus and coordination of federal efforts to support urban and off-reserve Aboriginal people increase their participation in the Canadian economy.

Shared outcome(s): The primary goal of the UAS is to better address issues facing Aboriginal people living in cities to increasing their social and economic participation, working toward the achievement of the following outcomes:

• Urban Aboriginal socio-economic needs are targeted within new and renewed federal initiatives, where appropriate.
• Access to and co-ordination of programs and services is improved.
• Partners co-ordinate development and communication of research, policies and knowledge.
• Horizontal linkages and policy integration within the federal government are improved for seeking opportunities for partnership (i.e. provincial and municipal governments, Aboriginal groups, and private sector) to maximize investment and results.

To accomplish these outcomes, UAS projects will focus investments in three priority areas: improving life skills; promoting job training, skills and entrepreneurship; and supporting Aboriginal women, children and families.

Governance structure(s): Steering committees are the catalysts for planning, recommending initiatives, and co-ordinating the on the ground work of the UAS to respond to urban Aboriginal issues. Each UAS steering committee is composed of a cross-section of the Aboriginal community, to ensure the steering committee's decisions reflect broad community concerns and priorities. Each steering committee also includes representation from the federal government, other levels of government and the private sector to identify local linkages and foster partnerships. The inclusive nature of the steering committees is indicative of the principle of partnership that underlies the UAS, particularly in keeping with the objective to establish strong and active partnerships between all levels of government and urban Aboriginal community.

Planning Highlights: The UAS works in partnership with other federal departments, provincial and municipal governments, Aboriginal communities and the private sector to make strategic investments designed to enhance the economic and social participation of Aboriginal people in Canada's urban centres. Community projects funded through the UAS focus on three priority areas: improving life skills; promoting job training, skills and entrepreneurship; and supporting Aboriginal women, children and families. The UAS also invests in building capacity within the urban Aboriginal community through investments that support the formation of effective partnerships and the development and implementation of strategic plans that address the unique needs of each community.

The UAS will continue to work toward achieving greater horizontality across federal departments to maximize investments. It will explore and implement new and innovative approaches to increase horizontality.

The UAS will also work toward making progress on its core objectives, including closing the unacceptable socio-economic gaps between urban Aboriginal people and other residents of cities, by leveraging funding from other levels of government and the private sector and by better aligning federal initiatives with provincial-municipal initiatives and other activities to better support urban Aboriginal people increase their participation in the economy.

The UAS is an opportunity driven strategy designed to leverage other federal, provincial, municipal, and private funding for community based projects rather than funding pre-planned projects. For these reasons variances will exist between the planned spending and partnering, and actual spending and partnering when the UAS reports on its results at the end of 2013-2014.

Federal Partners

There are 7 signatories to the Treasury Board Submission for the Urban Aboriginal Strategy:

• Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada
• Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
• Western Economic Diversification Canada
• Public Health Agency Of Canada
• Public Safety Canada
• Department of Justice
• Canadian Heritage

Expected results 2013-14: UAS projects will focus on increase the economic and social participation of urban Aboriginal people by focusing on three priority areas: improving life skills, promoting job training, skills and entrepreneurship, and supporting Aboriginal women, children and families.

Results to be achieved by non-federal partners (if applicable): The UAS improves program co-ordination within the Government of Canada to maximize its investments and aims for equal cost sharing with provincial and municipal governments.

Through sustainable partnership policy development, program co-ordination at the federal level and with provincial and municipal governments, Aboriginal, and private sector partners, the UAS addresses local priorities and engages partners in the process of reducing the disparities that urban Aboriginal people face.

The UAS strives to make significant progress along the road of horizontal management as well as shared accountability with all its partners. It represents a practical step that illustrates how Canada's government is moving in the right direction to ensure that Aboriginal people living in cities across Canada have greater access to the skills and experiences they need to gain access to and succeed in urban centres.

Contact information

Brenda Kustra,
Director General
Governance Branch
Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada
Brenda.Kustra@aandc-aadnc.gc.ca
Telephone: 819-997-8154