Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 7, 2026

AMC WELCOMES $1 BILLION HOMELESSNESS INVESTMENT, CALLS FOR FIRST NATIONS LEADERSHIP AND DIRECT FUNDING

TREATY ONE TERRITORY, Winnipeg _ The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) welcomes the more than $1 billion in federal funding announced today by Prime Minister Mark Carney and Premier Wab Kinew to build 2,000 supportive and transitional homes and a new Winnipeg Centre for Mental Health and Addictions. Grand Chief Kyra Wilson says the announcement presents an important opportunity to ensure First Nations citizens and families receive the housing, care and support they urgently need. However, AMC was not called upon to work with the Province on the plan behind this investment.

“I welcome this significant investment in Winnipeg to address homelessness, housing and mental health. Our people need housing. Our families need support. Nobody should be left living on the streets when governments have the resources to make a difference,” said Grand Chief Wilson.

“Every person deserves a safe place to call home. But we must also ask whether First Nations leadership will have a real role in determining how this investment is delivered, particularly when so many of those experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity in Winnipeg are First Nations citizens,” she said.

The announcement comes shortly after the First Nations–First Ministers Meeting in Ottawa, where First Nations leadership brought forward longstanding concerns about housing, infrastructure, jurisdiction and the need for direct relationships with Canada.

First Nations know why families leave their Nations in search of safety, housing, employment, health care and support. The housing crisis cannot be separated from the chronic underfunding of First Nations, inadequate infrastructure, and the impacts of forced evacuations and displacement.

“Manitoba First Nations have lived through devastating evacuations, including the Interlake First Nations, Peguis, Island Lake Nations, Mathias Colomb and Pimicikamak to name just a few. We have families who were displaced and have struggled for years to return home to safe, adequate housing,” said Grand Chief Wilson.

“We need to understand how many of the people this investment is intended to help are First Nations citizens, including those who were evacuated, displaced or never had the opportunity to return home.

We have First Nations children aging out of care who are left at the doors of shelters when they become adults. Their circumstances must be understood, and their Nations must be part of the response,” she added.

Grand Chief Wilson emphasized that First Nations’ responsibilities to their citizens do not end at the reserve boundary. First Nations families living in Winnipeg and other urban centres remain connected to their Nations, cultures, languages and rights. Addressing homelessness requires coordinated support for First Nations citizens both on and off reserve.

“We cannot continue to separate the housing needs of our people from the responsibility of governments to address the conditions that created this crisis. First Nations must be part of the decisions, and the resources must reach our Nations directly,” said Grand Chief Wilson.

With this investment flowing through a federal-provincial partnership, AMC is calling for federal funding that serves First Nations citizens to flow directly to First Nations governments, rather than through provincial intermediaries. First Nations must have the authority and resources to identify their own priorities, support their citizens and exercise their jurisdiction.

Grand Chief Wilson also welcomed Premier Kinew’s recent remarks about moving beyond the Indian Act, noting real change must extend beyond words to the structures that continue to govern First Nations funding and decision-making.

“If we are serious about moving beyond the Indian Act, we must be prepared to change the systems that continue to control First Nations’ access to resources and decision-making. Our Nations cannot be expected to carry the responsibility for our people without the authority and funding to do so,” she said.

AMC calls on Canada and Manitoba to work directly with First Nations leadership to ensure this investment addresses the needs of First Nations citizens, supports housing and mental health services, and recognizes the authority of First Nations to determine their own priorities. AMC is ready to meet with federal and provincial ministers to ensure First Nations are part of how this investment is designed and delivered.

“Our people deserve more than a place in someone else’s plan. They deserve a safe home, the support their families need, and the ability to shape their own future. That role belongs to our First Nations. Otherwise, we are simply being placed under another third-party framework,” said Grand Chief Wilson.

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For more information, please contact:

Communications Team, Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs

Email: media@manitobachiefs.com

About the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs:

The AMC was formed in 1988 by the Chiefs in

Manitoba to advocate on issues that commonly

affect First Nations in Manitoba.