Fact Sheets

Urban Aboriginal Population

According to 2006 Census, 54% of Canada’s Aboriginal population lives in urban areas; demographic projections forecast this figure to grow. However, given the population growth in urban settings, there is a critical knowledge gap with respect to Aboriginal peoples’ current realities in the urban context.
Significant well-being gaps remain between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in urban areas, particularly in terms of education and labour market outcomes.
A critical knowledge gap exists with respect to evidence-based policy options to address urban Aboriginal issues.

Providing services for urban Aboriginal people is rated as a high or very high priority by over 4 in 10 Regina and Saskatoon residents, and by:

Aboriginal residents rate quality of life in their city less highly than do non-Aboriginal residents.
Aboriginal youth are considerably less likely than non-Aboriginal youth to have attended post-secondary educational institutions;
About 15% of Aboriginal youth aged 20-24 years who reported university attendance had earned a university degree
- About one-half the completion rate of similarly aged non-Aboriginal youth;
Young Aboriginal adults (25-29 yrs) university completion rate was about 2 times lower than for non-Aboriginal adults;
Over 2/3 of Aboriginal youth who were not attending school reported an education level below high school certification;
Educational levels among Aboriginal youth lagged behind non-Aboriginal youth by a wide margin in all provinces and territories and in both rural and urban areas.
In 2006, Aboriginal youth with no certificates were less likely than non-Aboriginal Youth with no certificates to be active in the labour market;
Aboriginal youth 15-24 were twice as likely to be unemployed as compared to non-Aboriginal youth;
The unemployment rate of Aboriginal female youth was approximately 2 times higher than that of their non-Aboriginal counterparts;
Male Aboriginal youth were nearly twice more likely than male, non-Aboriginal youth to report unemployment at that time.

54% of Canada’s Aboriginal population lives in urban areas, and demographic projections suggest this figure will grow
Research to date on urban Aboriginal issues supported by government is helpful but limited; more and better research is needed to better understand the serious challenges Aboriginal people face in terms of integration with the urban economy and society
There is currently no shared analytic framework within the government to support research that responds to the challenges Aboriginal people face in urban settings
Researchers, policy makers, other levels of government are looking for leadership from the federal government; lack of action may contribute to increasing disconnection from the real life experiences of Aboriginal people
Effective urban Aboriginal policy in a post-Apology context requires urban Aboriginal people have the capacity to engage in evidence-based policy deliberations, with community-based research that complements national-level demographic, socio-economic analysis