First Nation school repairs shortchanged due to budget pressures: documents
OTTAWA — Documents tabled in Parliament show that federal budget tightening over the last three years forced officials to siphon millions away from badly needed school repairs on reserves to deal with other fiscal pressures.
In all, about $143.2 million that was targeted to help repair hundreds of schools on reserve ended up being redirected by Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada.
The funding pressure for capital work at on-reserve schools is steep: The documents, a written response to questions from NDP aboriginal affairs critic Charlie Angus, show that 115 educational facilities on reserve need immediate attention that is estimated to cost about $2 billion over the next five years.
Angus said the funding issue is a long-standing problem that has led to the “giant hole in First Nations educational equity.” The government, he said, should put a wall around any educational infrastructure funding to make sure that the cash can’t be allocated to other areas.