Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer
The new federal Build Canada Homes program could help solve the housing crisis — but only if the government delivers promised funding and ensures Indigenous communities lead the effort, housing advocates say.
On Sept. 14, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the creation of Build Canada Homes, a federal housing agency tasked with deploying $13 billion to build 4,000 modular homes in its initial phase. The first wave will focus on transitional and supportive housing for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Six cities, including Winnipeg, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa, Longueuil and Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, will launch the program.
In Winnipeg, the announcement is welcome because local housing pressure is especially acute, said Jackie Hunt, senior director of strategy and impact at End Homelessness. A recent street census found about 2,500 people without stable housing, with more than 80 per cent identifying as Indigenous, and mostly First Nations.
“Any new housing is important, but deeply affordable social housing is really what we’re hoping for,” Hunt said.
“It’s not just about putting a roof over someone’s head,” she said. Many people experience homelessness because of systemic barriers, generational trauma, the Sixties Scoop — a former government policy that removed Indigenous children from their families to place them in foster or adoptive homes — and the disproportionately high rates of violence, disappearances and deaths of Indigenous women and girls.
John Gordon, CEO of the National Indigenous Collaborative Housing Incorporated (NICHI), called Build Canada Homes “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to move quickly and at scale to meet urgent housing needs.”
But he said the program must prioritize Indigenous leadership. “What we’d like to see specifically is Indigenous people controlling the way Indigenous housing is allocated across the country. It has to be for Indigenous, by Indigenous,” Gordon said.
Advocates say that simply building units will not resolve the crisis unless housing solutions are rooted in an understanding of the complex barriers Indigenous Peoples face.
Margaret Pfoh, CEO of the Aboriginal Housing Management Association, said government-led, non-Indigenous approaches have consistently failed to reduce Indigenous overrepresentation in homelessness. As a result, involving Indigenous communities to take the lead in designing and delivering housing supports that are culturally appropriate is key. “This would provide real opportunity for our communities to thrive,” she said.
Hunt said addressing homelessness is just the start. Housing is needed across a spectrum, from shelter to transitional housing to affordable housing and ultimately, to homeownership. “Otherwise, somewhere along that continuum, they fall off and go back to the beginning again. It’s just wasteful,” she said.
Despite the optimism, advocates also remain skeptical of the new initiative, pointing to past unmet commitments.
Hunt said the federal government had previously pledged $2.1 billion for urban, rural and northern Indigenous housing, but only about $280 million has so far been delivered to the national Indigenous-led organization, NICHI. With most of the funding still tied up, projects have stalled and many communities are left waiting.
“We need to see where this [Build Canada Homes] is going to go because that promise was unmet,” she said.
Ray Sullivan, executive director of the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association, said government engagement must extend beyond “distinctions-based” governments — which recognize First Nations, Métis and Inuit as distinct peoples with separate cultures and rights — to also include Indigenous housing providers in urban, rural and northern areas who operate outside those formal structures.
“The government has delayed focusing on this community sector for years,” Sullivan said.
The Department of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities told Canada’s National Observer that its new Build Canada Homes initiative will work closely with Indigenous partners to expand long-term affordable housing, with a focus on respecting Indigenous leadership and leveraging community knowledge.
Work is ongoing on the Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy. Some funding has already been provided through specific agreements with First Nations, Inuit and Métis partners. “The government is committed to continuing to deliver the remaining funding under this strategy, with more information to come soon,” the department said in an email response.
The department said Build Canada Homes has been engaging with Indigenous governments, provinces, territories and trusted housing partners throughout the summer, using feedback from a recent guide that outlines initial plans and gathers input. The program will offer financial incentives and tools to support Indigenous and non-market housing providers, while boosting community housing in urban, rural northern and public land developments.
The department did not provide specific details about the announcement or address questions about past funding commitments.
Sullivan said while Build Canada Homes is prioritizing six pilot sites, the federal government owns hundreds more parcels of land that could be used to boost affordable housing supply.
“There’s much more opportunity to be tapped,” Sullivan said.
