Tackling Indigenous Child Poverty in Canada
This report provides the third installment in a series of papers that track the gap between Indigenous children and other children in Canada, using the after-tax Low-Income Measure (LIM-AT). That snapshot provides a disturbing picture of child poverty in Canada: one where First Nations children are far and away the most marginalized and economically disadvantaged. Tracking Indigenous child poverty and non-Indigenous child poverty trends between Census 2006 and Census 2016, it’s clear that these differences have not markedly changed over that 10-year period.
Broadly speaking, child poverty on reserves has remained almost unchanged for a decade. Little improvement has been registered for Inuit or non-status First Nations children either. Comparing urban areas, poverty rates have fallen for Indigenous children in the western cities of Edmonton, Regina, Winnipeg, and, particularly, Saskatoon. Nevertheless, more than half of status First Nations children in Regina, Winnipeg, and Saskatoon continue to live below the poverty line. Poverty rates amongst Métis children have improved, however, these improvements may be influenced by changes in self-reporting and require further study.
About the authors
Natasha Beedie
Daniel Wilson
David Macdonald
David joined the CCPA as its Senior Ottawa Economist in 2011, although he has been a long time contributor as a research associate. Since 2008, he has coordinated the Alternative Federal Budget, which takes a fresh look at the federal budget from a progressive perspective. David has also written on a variety of topics, from child care to income inequality to federal fiscal policy. He is a regular media commentator on national policy issues, often speaking to the CBC, Globe and Mail, Toronto Star and Canadian Press. David received his BA from the University of Windsor and his MA from the University of Guelph, both in Philosophy. Follow David on Bluesky at @davidmaccdn.bsky.social