Kwe. Hello. Bonjour, everyone.
It's a beautiful autumn day here today on the land of my ancestors and the land of my current relatives, the Algonquin Anishinabe, and I wish you all a good morning.
I am joined here today by my colleagues from Indigenous Services Canada to speak about the department’s support to indigenous peoples through access to federal procurement opportunities.
I would also like to speak to the work we are doing with partners to make improvements to the current Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business. This includes work under way to ensure that first nations, Inuit and Métis peoples identify eligible indigenous businesses.
First I'll give some history and context of the rationale for creating the procurement strategy for indigenous businesses, which I will refer to as PSIB.
Indigenous people in Canada comprise approximately 5% of the overall population in Canada, yet, historically, businesses owned by first nations, Inuit and Métis entrepreneurs were consistently awarded a lower percentage of federal contracts.
In the early 1990s, the government saw an opportunity to increase indigenous people's access to procurement opportunities. In 1995, the eligibility criteria for the current PSIB, then under a slightly different name, was approved. Based on engagements with indigenous businesses, economic development organizations and national indigenous organizations, in 2021, Public Services and Procurement Canada, with support from Indigenous Services Canada and Treasury Board Secretariat, created more opportunities by implementing the mandatory minimum 5% indigenous procurement target. Updates were also made to PSIB to optimize opportunities for first nations, Inuit and Métis people in federal procurement.
Today, the PSIB and the mandatory 5% target continue to be two important ways that the Government of Canada supports indigenous businesses, indigenous community-owned businesses and indigenous entrepreneurs across the country.
I want to directly address the tangible economic benefits and supports for indigenous business development. Securing government contracts can lead to a steady revenue stream and provide financial stability to help indigenous businesses grow. Winning a government contract can help a business gain valuable experience and build credibility, which can open the door to other contracting opportunities. When a contract is awarded to a community-owned business such as a first nation-owned business, it has a direct positive socio-economic impact on the community. When a contract is awarded to a business owned by indigenous individuals, it has a direct positive impact on the indigenous people who own and operate that business, and it has an indirect positive socio-economic impact on the broader community.
We know that economic and social conditions are ever-evolving. In 2021, to meet these evolving needs, Indigenous Services Canada established a five-year plan to engage indigenous partners and co-develop a transformative indigenous procurement strategy. These reforms will improve existing procurement policies and programs and help ensure that benefits intended for indigenous people go to indigenous people.
This five-year process is currently under way. A key message delivered by partners in our co-development discussions is that first nations, Inuit and Métis are best positioned to verify and define “indigenous businesses”. My department is committed to working with these partners to develop a path forward to transferring the verification of indigenous businesses to indigenous partners.
To conclude, I'd like to emphasize that increasing economic opportunities and supporting economic development are essential to ISC's priorities in advancing self-determination and closing socio-economic gaps. Opportunities for indigenous businesses through Canada's procurement operations are important contributors to this economic agenda. It's about fostering long-term partnerships that lead to self-sufficiency and growth. Involving first nation, Inuit and Métis businesses in supply chains helps to ensure that wealth generated from these activities stays in communities and with indigenous entrepreneurs. This supports local development, job creation and cultural preservation.
I welcome your questions.
Meegwetch.
