
The Native Women’s Association of Canada recently issued a research report about the current housing conditions of indigenous women in Canada. Individual communities may declare a state of emergency because of poor housing conditions, but it is unusual to see a report of conditions that spans the country.1 The Native Women’s Association of Canada is the first national indigenous organization to take on this challenge. Chronically underfunded, it is even more to their credit that they undertook this project.
Housing conditions for indigenous people, both on and off reserve, are much poorer than housing for the rest of Canada’s residents. This applies across all of the scales that are used to measure Canada’s core housing need.2
The research for the report involved three different lines of inquiry: a literature review, an online survey and engagement sessions that were held in communities across the country. The results of each of these inquiries are presented. The report also includes a housing continuum that shows the range of housing types that are discussed in the report. The range includes emergency and transitional shelters as well as permanent rental and ownership housing. The report concludes with recommendations for change and next steps.
Why is this resource important?
This report will be valuable to groups in Canada and elsewhere that are advocating for housing rights and improving the housing conditions for indigenous people. It underscores the need for better housing conditions and for housing that is affordable for people with extremely low incomes on a permanent and ongoing basis. It highlights the need for federal government funding to improve housing conditions for Indigenous people across Canada.
The separate reporting from each of the lines of inquiry will also help people are looking for research tools for inquiries of their own.
For more, read at the Native Women’s Association of Canada: Indigenous Housing: Policy and Engagement
Footnotes
- Elsewhere, we have covered a report by indigenous housing providers. See: Indigenous Housing Providers: A Source Of Strength For Affordable Housing
- The scales are: affordability, building condition, and the fit between the number of occupants and the number of rooms (suitability). The fourth scale, whether there is alternative housing available at an affordable price, comes into play when there is need in one or more of the other three. The scales were established by Statistics Canada. The measures are collected and reported at five year intervals, as part of the national census.