AFN, Canada move forward on child services revamp – Manitoulin Expositor

July 15, 2020

On Manitoulin, Kina leaving decisions to member First Nations

OTTAWA – Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) and the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) last week signed a new protocol to guide the implementation of revolutionary changes in the Act respecting First Nation, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, an act that is aimed at correcting failures in the Indigenous child welfare system and giving more jurisdiction to First Nations to manage their own child and family services.

“First Nations children deserve to grow up in a home that is full of love, culturally relevant, and has the resources to ensure success in life,” stated AFN national chief Perry Bellegarde in a press release about the announcement. He penned the agreement with Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller on Tuesday, July 7.

Indigenous children are overrepresented in the child and family services system. They make up less than eight percent of the total population of children in Canada but Indigenous children comprise more than 52 percent of the children in foster care at private homes.

Read More: https://www.manitoulin.ca/afn-canada-move-forward-on-child-services-revamp/