The Peguis First Nation is set to become the first Indigenous group in Manitoba to take control of child welfare under federal legislation that took effect three years ago.
The community, which lives north of Winnipeg, says federal Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu and provincial Families Minister Rochelle Squires will attend the signing of a coordination agreement between the three governments.
The First Nation is one of more than two dozen communities that have informed Indigenous Services Canada that it intends to handle its own child and family services, as set out in the federal Act on First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth And mentioned respecting the families.
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The Cowes First Nation in Saskatchewan was the first group in Canada to take over child welfare in July 2021.
Peguis’ own laws came into force a year earlier after the community notified Ottawa the previous year, but the province had not signed off at the time.
It would be the first time Manitoba has signed on to such an agreement after expressing concerns over the legislation.
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