End Homelessness Winnipeg receives $27.3M in additional federal funding

Community advisory board to decide how new funding will be spent

End Homelessness Winnipeg CEO Jason Whitford, left, and Winnipeg South Centre MP Ben Carr announce federal funding for work to end homelessness in Winnipeg. (Randall McKenzie/CBC)

End Homelessness Winnipeg is getting an additional $27.3 million in federal funding to prevent and reduce homelessness.

A community advisory board at End Homelessness will decide how the funding will be spent, CEO Jason Whitford said at a news conference on Tuesday.

The money will likely go toward strengthening housing first programs, extending hours at shelters, and homelessness preventative measures for children aging out of care and people exiting the justice system, he said.

"Housing is more than just a roof over someone's head. It is about belonging, safety, healing and helping that individual fulfil their purpose," Whitford said.

The funds come through the national homelessness strategy's designated communities and Indigenous homelessness streams, which provide funding to 64 urban areas, three territorial capitals, 30 Indigenous communities and rural and remote communities across Canada. 

Tuesday's announcement brings the total for Winnipeg through these streams to $174.7 million from 2019-20 to 2027-28.

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Whitford said more than 75 per cent of people experiencing homelessness in Winnipeg are Indigenous, although Indigenous people only make up 14 per cent of Winnipeg's total population.

"Addressing this disparity requires solutions that are Indigenous-led, culturally grounded and driven by the voices of those most affected to create lasting change," he said.

End Homelessness Winnipeg, which works to address systemic barriers contributing to homelessness in the city, completed a point-in-time street census count in November last year that will be released in mid-April, Whitford said.

The preliminary results from the survey suggest there has been an influx of people exiting the justice system and child-welfare system who are released into shelters because they have nowhere else to go, he said.

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Investing in appropriate and innovative housing support reduces homelessness, restores dignity, strengthens community and promotes reconciliation, he said.

"Eliminating chronic homelessness takes a co-ordinated effort," Winnipeg South Centre MP Ben Carr said at the news conference.

Living without adequate housing prevents people from improving their lives, Carr said, and intergenerational trauma, mental health struggles, addictions and other socio-economic barriers contribute to chronic homelessness.

Ottawa is kicking in tens of millions in more funding to help get people off the streets. It's one more step in not only finding housing for the city's most vulnerable but towards ending chronic homelessness.

Author: Tessa Adamski

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