Nearly Half of Indigenous Children Live in Poverty, Study Finds
A study conducted by the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives found that 47 per cent of Indigenous children across Canada, both on and off reserve, live in poverty — more than two and a half times the national average. When considering only on-reserve children, the number rises to 53 per cent — four times the rate for White children. AFN National Chief Perry Bellegarde said, “Canada is not tracking First Nations poverty on-reserve, so we did. Our children face the worst social and economic conditions in the country. They deserve an opportunity to succeed.”