Indigenous Community Support Fund
This fund helps Indigenous communities and organizations prevent, prepare and respond to COVID-19.
Status: Closed
This support is now closed. If your community or organization requires immediate support for an emergency, please contact your ISC Regional Office emergency contact.
On this page
About the fund
The health, safety and well-being of all people in Canada, including First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples is and will remain a top priority for all.
Canada recognized that First Nations, Inuit and Métis were among the most at-risk during the COVID-19 crisis. In particular, those in remote and fly-in only parts of the country were uniquely vulnerable. Communities are incredibly resilient and full of solutions and innovative ideas. This is why we supported distinctions-based measures to improve public health response for Indigenous communities and provided them with the flexibility they needed to address the specific needs identified by communities and their members.
This fund provided Indigenous leadership and organizations with the flexibility needed to design and implement community-based solutions to prevent, prepare and respond to the spread of COVID-19 within their communities. These funds were used for measures including, but not limited to:
- preparedness measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19
- mental health assistance and emergency response services
- support for Elders and vulnerable community members
- measures to address food insecurity, such as support for the purchase, transportation and distribution of food, and access to traditional foods through hunting and fishing in the event of outbreaks
- educational and other support for children
Although the fund was created to prevent, prepare and respond to COVID-19, we recommend communities speak with their regional First Nations and Inuit Health Branch contacts, or First Nations Health Authority contacts (in British Columbia), for the most up-to-date information about COVID-19 vaccine distribution and support for the rollout on reserve and in Inuit Nunangat.
Who this supported
- First Nations communities and organizations, including self-governing and modern treaty nations
- Inuit communities and organizations in Inuit Nunangat
- Métis Nation communities and organizations
- urban and off-reserve Indigenous communities and organizations
Deadline
The Indigenous Community Support Fund is now closed. The deadline to request needs-based funding was March 31, 2023. All formula-based funding has been allocated directly to First Nation, Inuit and Métis Nation communities.
If your community or organization requires immediate support for an emergency, please contact your ISC regional office emergency contact.
How it worked
Needs-based funding
Needs-based funding was available through the request process, to:
- all First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities and organizations
- Indigenous communities and organizations serving Indigenous peoples, including those living in urban centres and First Nations living off reserve.
First Nations
On-reserve and self-governing First Nations communities received formula-based funding directly from Indigenous Services Canada (ISC).
The amount provided to each community took into account a base amount per community, the total population residing in community (based on 2016 Census population) and was adjusted for remoteness and Community Well-Being Index scores.
Landless bands received $50,000, as their amounts are not able to be adjusted based on population residing in community, remoteness and Community Well-Being Index scores. A landless band is defined as a band with no corresponding land on the Indian Lands Registry System.
Additional funding announced on August 12, 2020, November 30, 2020, April 19, 2021 and April 7, 2022, followed the same methodology, but the base amount was $25,000 per community.
Inuit
Inuit Nunangat regions received formula-based funding directly from ISC. Distribution of all funding among the Inuit land claims and representative organizations of Inuit Nunangat was in accordance with the general regional allocation funding formula determined by the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami Board of Directors.
Métis Nation
Métis Nation governing members received formula-based funding through existing mechanisms to facilitate funding distribution. A standard model was applied to decide how much each region received, consistent with governing members historical application to federal funding.
Urban and off-reserve Indigenous organizations and communities
Since March 2020, approximately $450 million in needs-based funding has been provided to urban and off-reserve Indigenous communities and organizations.
How the fund developed during the pandemic
On March 18, 2020, the Government of Canada announced $305 million for a new, distinctions-based Indigenous Community Support Fund (ICSF) through its COVID-19 Economic Response Plan to address immediate needs in First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities. $290 million was allocated directly to First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities and $15 million was allocated to urban and off-reserve Indigenous organizations through a call for requests.
On May 21, 2020, $75 million was announced for urban and off-reserve Indigenous organizations, bringing the total to $90 million.
On August 12, 2020, an additional $305 million was announced. This included:
- approximately $145.2 million in direct allocations to First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities
- a further $159.8 million in needs-based COVID-19 support for Indigenous communities and organizations serving Indigenous peoples, including those living in urban centres and First Nations living off reserve
The needs-based request process was launched on October 30, 2020 and closed on November 30, 2020.
On November 30, 2020, an additional $380 million was announced for the fund through the Fall Economic Statement. This included:
- approximately $145.2 million in direct allocations to First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities
- a further $234.8 million in needs-based COVID-19 support for Indigenous communities and organizations, including $75 million to support Indigenous peoples living in urban centres and members of First Nations living off reserve
On December 18, 2020, the government announced that $30 million of the $100 million Emergency Food Security Fund is being transferred to ISC from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada to help improve access to food and increase food supply for Indigenous communities, and was distributed through the Indigenous Community Support Fund.
On April 19, 2021, Budget 2021 committed an additional $760.8 million for the ICSF. This included:
- approximately $400 million in direct allocations to First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities
- a further $360 million in needs-based COVID-19 support for Indigenous communities and organizations, including $150 million to support Indigenous peoples living in urban centres and members of First Nations living off reserve
- the remaining $800,000 was set aside for administration to ensure the swift delivery of funds
On April 7, 2022, Budget 2022 committed an additional $190.5 million for the ICSF for Indigenous organizations and communities. On August 2, 2022, the Government of Canada transferred an additional $50 million to the ICSF from COVID-19 public health funding, bringing the total ICSF funding for 2022-2023 to $240.5 million.
A list of Indigenous Community Support Fund distributions to communities and organizations is available.
Contact us
To find out more please contact your regional office.