Madam Speaker, determining and affirming one's indigenous identity is deeply personal and complex. It is not for the House to act as the arbiter of anyone's identity. We must acknowledge that indigenous heritage and identity are not always straightforward. Many indigenous people in Canada face challenges in tracing their roots due to historical injustices, including systemic efforts to erase indigenous cultures and identities. Labelling someone as fake without evidence is disrespectful, and it perpetrates harm and division. Instead, I would like to focus on the importance of economic reconciliation and the procurement strategy for indigenous businesses as an important tool for alleviating the injustices faced by indigenous communities over the last centuries.
I would like to remind members of the House that indigenous peoples in Canada make up approximately 5% of the overall population, yet historically, businesses owned by first nations, Inuit and Métis entrepreneurs were consistently winning a lower percentage of federal contracts. This was not due to a lack of capability or innovation, but because of systemic barriers. In fact, during the Harper government, less than 1% of procurement contracts went to indigenous businesses.
That is why, based on engagement with indigenous organizations and business leaders in 2021, Public Services and Procurement Canada, in collaboration with the Treasury Board and ISC, created more opportunities by implementing the mandatory minimum 5% indigenous procurement target. We have heard many times from indigenous partners how important PSIB is for advancing economic reconciliation and supporting indigenous businesses. Since we announced the 5% target, we have seen a surge in indigenous entrepreneurs' interest and investment in the program.
Investing in indigenous communities and building up indigenous businesses and entrepreneurs benefits all Canadians. According to a 2022 report entitled “National Indigenous Economic Strategy for Canada”, the continued exclusion of indigenous people costs the Canadian economy nearly $28 billion every year. The National Indigenous Economic Development Board found that closing the existing employment gap could help lift over 150,000 indigenous people out of poverty. There is a real cost to inaction.
On the rare occasions when there are questions about legitimacy of a business or its operations, we have processes in place. Concerns can be referred to the Public Services and Procurement Canada's office of supplier integrity and compliance. This office administers the ineligibility and suspension policy, which ensures any supplier lacking business integrity or honesty can be suspended or debarred. Additionally, we are co-developing a transformative indigenous procurement strategy with indigenous partners to strengthen the integrity and inclusiveness of the program. One key component is transferring the indigenous business directory to indigenous partners, who are best positioned to define and verify indigenous businesses.
We reject the idea that isolated incidents of bad actors should be used to undermine a program delivering tangible benefits. Economic reconciliation is not about contracts. It is about creating opportunities for indigenous communities to thrive and for all Canadians to benefit from their innovation and entrepreneurship.