Aboriginal Services A Chief Concern At All Levels

November 15, 2007

Ottawa’s Aboriginal community is celebrating following an announcement to include the City of Ottawa in the Urban Aboriginal Strategy (UAS).

Ottawa’s Aboriginal community is celebrating following an announcement to include the City of Ottawa in the Urban Aboriginal Strategy (UAS). The announcement was made by Chuck Strahl, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians and makes Ottawa the 13th UAS pilot site. The announcement followed a highly successful Aboriginal Information Fair held at the Odawa Native Friendship Centre on October 25.The goal of the UAS is to get the federal, provincial and municipal governments, local Aboriginal organizations, non-government agencies and private sector organizations to all work together. The UAS will provide money that will increase services offered to the 35,000 Aboriginal people living in the National Capital Region, one of the fastest growing urban Aboriginal populations in Canada. The UAS will help Ottawa make the most of the skills and hard work of Aboriginal people and provide a brighter future for them and a stronger community for all residents.

The Information Fair was the brainchild of the Aboriginal Working Committee (AWC). The fair showcased services from over 40 Ottawa area agencies and organizations that provide a range of services and programs to the Aboriginal community. It was a chance for service providers to meet each other and discover how they could better work together to improve services to the Aboriginal community.

More than 200 people attended the fair that celebrated Aboriginal traditions, culture and cuisine. Fair-goers were treated to performances by the award winning drummers from Minwaashin Lodge Aboriginal Women’s Support Centre as well as Inuit throat singing by the Ottawa Inuit Children’s Centre.

The AWC works to establish and strengthen relationships between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal service providers and address issues that affect the Aboriginal community. The AWC is made up of representatives from the Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition, United Way, City of Ottawa – Community and Protective Service Department, Ottawa Police Service and the Champlain Local Health Integration Network. The Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition is made up of the following agency representatives: Gignul Non-Profit Housing Corporation, Minwaashin Lodge Aboriginal Women’s Support Centre, Odawa Native Friendship Centre, Tewegan Transition House, Wabano Centre for Aboriginal Health and Ottawa Inuit Children’s Centre.

The AWC also conducted a survey in August and September that gathered information on the strengths of existing services and how to better communicate their availability with the Aboriginal community. Approximately 135 individuals and more than 85 service providers completed the survey.

The next event is a “Listening Circles” consultation forum that will allow a number of different groups to get together and discuss challenges raised in the survey. The “Listening Circles” forum will provide the AWC with a road map to follow over the next two years.