OTTAWA,
ON, April 19, 2024 /CNW/ - The Minister of
Indigenous Services, Patty Hajdu, issued the following
statement today:
"I would like to sincerely thank Mr. Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, the United Nations Special
Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and
sanitation, for visiting Canada to
better understand and assess our country's efforts to implement the
human rights to water and sanitation. More work must be done to
ensure all First Nations have access to clean drinking water.
Decades of discriminatory funding will not be undone overnight,
but we are making progress. In 2015, 105 long-term drinking water
advisories were in place. Our Government has increased funding by
150% in water infrastructure and followed the lead of First Nations
communities with a plan to lift all long-term drinking water
advisories. Today, 28 long-term advisories remain.
After extensive consultation with First Nations partners across
Canada, we also tabled Bill C-61,
the proposed First Nations Clean Water Act, that provides the next
steps to ensure clean drinking water in First Nations. Concretely,
it will: affirm the inherent right of first Nations to manage their
own water systems; ensure First Nations communities have reliable
access to drinking water; hold governments accountable to provide
sustainable funding towards water infrastructure; and create the
necessary tools to protect their water sources.
At the forefront of all solutions is the leadership of First
Nations. Our Government will be with communities every step of the
way to ensure they have clean drinking water for generations to
come."
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SOURCE Indigenous Services Canada