Given disproportionate housing need experienced by Indigenous people, as well as distinct cultural needs, the federal government must robustly fund and enable the development of an urban, rural and northern Indigenous housing strategy, by and for Indigenous households. It is a critical but missing element of the current National Housing Strategy.
Most recently, the Parliamentary Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs is studying the effects of the housing shortage on Indigenous people. CHF Canada submitted a brief with two recommendations:
- Implement an Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Strategy as called for by the CHRA; and
- Develop a long-term solution for Indigenous housing co-operatives.