Indigenous People More Likely to Experience Poverty in Canada

The poverty rate among Indigenous people in Canada declined from 2015 to 2020 but they are more likely to experience poverty, Statistics Canada said on Wednesday.

According to the 2021 Census of Population, the poverty rate for Indigenous people, excluding First Nations people living on reserve, fell from 23.8 percent in 2015 to 11.8 percent in 2020.

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Mirroring the overall poverty trend in Canada during this period, the decrease was mostly driven by increased government transfers and temporary pandemic-related benefits. As a result, the poverty gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people from 2015 to 2020 varied little, the national statistical agency said.

According to the census data, the poverty rate in Canada decreased from 14.5 percent in 2015 to 8.1 percent in 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the confirmation of unmarked graves at former residential school sites have brought renewed attention to the long-standing and ongoing socioeconomic inequities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. The agency said that these inequities include a higher prevalence of poverty among First Nations people, Métis and Inuit, perpetuated by colonial policies and practices, including barriers to educational and economic opportunities.

The agency noted that these statistics are based on the population living in private dwellings and on the concept of usual place of residence. Poverty statistics based on census data may understate the situation of poverty among Indigenous people living in urban centers.

In Canada, a family is considered to be in poverty if, given its size and region of residence, it does not have enough income to buy a set of goods and services considered to represent a modest, basic standard of living.