Over the years I have learned that capturing the economic benefits of federally funded capital projects relies on assuming the risk of managing and building the projects. As Bosgoed Project Consultants grew from consulting engineering to project management to construction contracting, our expanded scope allowed for greater influence over the amount of Indigenous labour, suppliers and contractors on the project. We found many solutions in capturing those opportunities, including the WorkFirst Community Workforce Engagement Strategy. These localized efforts make a huge difference to the local economy. Can those principles apply to the entire capital funding program for First Nations? Would it be better to transfer control to a First Nations organization? I welcome your input on this topic in today’s blog.
Over 20 years ago I was asked to help with a project on a reservation in Montana. I called the Montana State Board of Examiners to inquire about their process to register as a professional engineer. When it became clear I was going to be working on a Native American reservation, they told me my licensing would not come from them, but from a Native American organization whose contact was Majel Bird.
I spoke to Majel and we had a great conversation about the funding of capital projects in the United States versus Canada. According to Majel, American First Nations communities applied for funding from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The BIA reviewed and approved projects and then sent all the funding to the designated community. If the project was under budget, the community allocated the extra funding according to their needs. Often, it was spent on library materials and computers. In Canada, at that time and at present, funding is meted out on a monthly basis and based on cash flow submissions and the oversight of a federal government person.
Majel felt they had a long way to go to achieve their goals of self-sufficiency. When I conveyed to Majel how Canadian governments worried about our poor management of these funds, she affirmed Montana First Nations communities employed professional project managers, architects, engineers, accounts, and lawyers to ensure their system worked properly. As they transitioned responsibility to the communities, some of the people who had worked at the Bureau of Indian Affairs were employed with native organizations.
I’m not close to the centre of the universe of Indigenous Services Canada, but at that time Indian Affairs was “devolving” services to the First Nations. One of the chiefs I work closely with in Manitoba clarified this process probably indicated we were “evolving” if Indian Affairs were devolving. Indian Affairs used terms such as “prudence” and “probity” to describe the transition of responsibility. Some First Nations leaders felt First Nations in Canada should have been treated like another level of government and transferred the full capital project amount. Many First Nations have felt, however, as if somebody thought we were going to take the money and run away to Las Vegas or spend it on something irrational. Canadian First Nations never had the chance to develop capacity with our own technical professionals to execute these projects. If we had those professionals, children in our communities would have role models that would quickly create more professionals and more capacity. More of the project spending would stay in the community as opposed to a high percentage of leakage which occurs as we speak.
Should funding responsibility transfer to the First Nations organizations in Canada? I know some First Nations leaders think so. I once traveled to Ottawa with a First Nation Chief and a provincial Vice-Chief to request funding from the Minister of Indian Affairs for a modern residential school to be run by the First Nation. The Minister’s asked; “If we fund this project, which projects on our list of capital projects will have to move down the list to make room for this one?” The Vice Chief was quick to respond; “Minister, the Chiefs can decide the priority of capital projects.” In that moment, he encapsulated the future. The Minister and her staff apparently felt confident that question would be difficult to answer. The immediate and concise answer by the Vice Chief was a wonderful thing to witness. In the end, the Minister said they were simply not going to fund residential schools. We returned home without funding, but ever since then I have held the vision of the entire management of the capital program by First Nations at the national level.
There are many qualified people who could manage these programs for First Nations. I know of several project leaders who manage billions in capital project funding with more responsibility than usually allowed for on government-funded projects. Although there are only a few First Nations professional engineers in Canada, there are many other skilled people we could hire to run these programs. In 2021, it seems transferring those programs to First Nations is overdue. According to some rumors, the Chiefs themselves do not that want that responsibility for fear of the political fallout of deciding which projects do not get funding.
There may be some growing pains in the transition from Federal to First Nations government control, but there are ways of managing those risks. An initial step would be to provide resources for Canadian First Nations to plan the transition in the program they will operate. This could include transferring personnel currently running those programs so they can work directly for Canadian First Nations. Such movement would allow for these personnel to be trained in the priorities of the communities and to keep more of that spending and employment in the community. Perhaps it could be treated as transfer payments from the federal government to the provinces. These changes would indicate strong movements towards reconciliation.
If you feel uneasy about the proposition of transferring capital project funding to First Nations nationally as you read this, please ask yourself why. Can First Nations operate the capital funding program efficiently? Can we not find a way to manage the capital programs and the localized political pressures to find a system that works?
What do you think? Please tell us if you agree. We would truly appreciate your input!
Have a great Wednesday, and we’ll see you here next week.
~ Gary and the team at BPC
