Thank you for the opportunity to appear here today.
My name is Sean Longboat. I'm the CEO of the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres. We represent 31 member friendship centres from across Ontario.
I'm joined by Audrey Davis, the treasurer of our board of directors and the executive director of the Hamilton Regional Indian Centre. We both happen to be members of the Six Nations of the Grand River territory and residents of the greater Golden Horseshoe, and I'm here today to comment on our pre-budget submission.
Before I do that, I want to begin by thanking the federal government for restoring friendship centre core funding for five years, including enhancements. Those enhancements were initially time-limited, and this continuation stabilizes the operational backbone of friendship centres for the first time in decades. This has been critical in moving centres away from survival mode and towards thriving.
Ontario is home to the largest urban indigenous population in Canada, with 88% of indigenous people now living off-reserve in cities, towns and rural areas. Friendship centres are significant multiservice organizations employing more than 930 frontline staff across 31 communities. The recent enhancements announced allow friendship centres to build management capacity and focus on long-term planning and partnerships.
Here are a few examples of what that stability is already making possible.
In Thunder Bay, a 58-bed indigenous youth transitional housing facility is moving forward and is set to open in the coming months. In Hamilton, the friendship centre is achieving strong housing outcomes and has developed a new partnership with child welfare agencies to improve outcomes for indigenous families. Across Ontario, friendship centres now have the capacity to develop long-term strategic plans that create a clear path for lasting success.
Centres are also using the funding to stabilize wages, as program salary caps were causing chronic turnover. Before the enhancements, one-third of friendship centre staff had reported to us that they were using food banks in their communities.
We're also studying the economic impacts of friendship centres. Early analysis shows that for every dollar invested, friendship centres generate approximately $1.17 in local economic activity, outperforming growth in mainstream and government service delivery.
I'm here today to reflect the priorities in our pre-budget submission, particularly mental health and addictions, housing and homelessness, violence prevention and emergency management.
We also want to be clear about what we're asking for. We recognize that Canada is facing fiscal constraints. We're not asking for increased core funding; that stability is in place, and it's working. I want to draw the distinction between core funding and program funding. Core funding is not program funding, but what we need is a continuation of program funding alongside targeted investments in key priority areas identified within our submission. What we are proposing builds on our results and protects the progress that has already been made.
The first is mental health and addictions. This is a national crisis that disproportionately affects indigenous people, and sustained investment in indigenous-led wraparound services reduces pressures on health care systems and improves community safety.
The second is housing and homelessness. In Ontario, indigenous people represent 20% to 50% of the population experiencing homelessness and account for between 65% and 88% in some communities while only making up 3% of the province's total population. Friendship centres deliver integrated, cost-effective housing programs that outperform fragmented systems and reduce reliance on shelters and emergency services. Our submission calls for renewal and expansion of the Reaching Home program, fulfillment of the urban, rural and northern indigenous housing strategy commitment, and expanded indigenous-led housing solutions.
Our third priority is violence prevention. Programs like kizhaay anishinaabe niin, which translates to “I am a kind man”, work with indigenous men and boys to prevent violence and promote healthy relationships alongside other prevention-focused services supporting safer communities. At the same time, the four-year urban indigenous homeward bound program supports single-parent mothers to stabilize, complete post-secondary education, enter the workforce and build long-term independence and intergenerational prosperity. We know this program is working, but it is currently underfunded, and it's at risk. We're asking the federal government to step up and help sustain it.