Agreement aimed at improving services for Anishinaabe youths

Press Release

Ontario and Grand Council Treaty #3 are working together to transform the system of services for Anishinaabe children and youth in Northwestern Ontario.
Children and Youth Services minister Michael Coteau and Grand Council Treaty #3 Ogichidaa Francis Kavanaugh signed a relationship agreement Thursday in Kenora that will strengthen the relationship between Ontario and Grand Council Treaty #3.
The agreement reaffirms a commitment to work together to improve outcomes and opportunities for Anishinaabe children and youth in the Treaty #3 territory, through the co-implementation of the Ontario Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy.
The strategy provides the framework for the province to support Grand Council Treaty #3 to transform the system of services for children and youth to better meet the needs of Anishinaabe children, youth, and families.
Working together with First Nations’ communities is part of the government’s commitment to strengthening relations with indigenous peoples in Ontario.
Supporting Anishinaabe children and youth, and helping them reach their full potential, is part of our commitment to reconciliation.
“Grand Council Treaty #3 is committed to creating the best opportunities for Anishinaabe children and youth in Treaty #3 to live in safe and healthy families and communities,” said Kavanaugh.
“I would like to commend the hard work of all of our Treaty #3 leadership, our regional organizations, and community front-line staff who work tirelessly in the development and implementation of local and regional programs and services for the benefit of our families and communities,” he added.
“I am pleased that we have all been able to gather today [Sept. 7] to reaffirm our commitment and sign this relationship agreement with Ontario for the benefit of our children, youth, and families.”
“The relationship agreement between the Government of Ontario and Grand Council Treaty #3 signifies the important work we have done together through the Ontario Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy,” noted Coteau.
“This agreement also affirms our shared commitment to strengthen our bilateral relationship, and continue working to achieve better outcomes and opportunities for Anishinaabe children and youth in Treaty #3,” he said.
Grand Council Treaty #3 is the traditional government of the Anishinaabe Nation, comprising 26 Anishinaabe communities in Northwestern Ontario and two in southeastern Manitoba.
Commitments to strengthen the relationship between Ontario and Grand Council Treaty #3 first were set out in a bilateral agreement signed in May, 2009.
The Ministry of Children and Youth Services-Grand Council Treaty #3 relationship agreement will complement and advance the bilateral one.