| Aboriginal Advisory Committee to the Minister (MCFD) |
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BCAAFC Aboriginal Policy InformationAboriginal Advisory Committee to the Minister (MCFD) MOU DRAFT MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING Between: United Native Nations The Métis Provincial Council of
The First Nations
The
And in Support of this Memorandum of Understanding, Assembly of First Nations (BC Region) BC Association of Aboriginal Friendship Centres Federation of Aboriginal Foster Parents - and – First Nations Agency Directors Forum - and - Native Courtworker and Counselling Association of BC United Aboriginal Child and Family Director’s Association
A. The Parties agree that there is a disproportionate number of Aboriginal children in care in
B. The Parties recognize that First Nations, the Métis Nation, Inuit and other Aboriginal Peoples assert an inherent right with respect to and jurisdiction over the safety and well-being of their children and families. C. The Parties agree on the need for a respectful and ongoing government-to-government relationship and dialogue on all issues relating to the safety and well-being of all Aboriginal children and families. D. The Parties agree that this relationship is based on mutual trust and mutual respect and must be consistent with existing protocols, agreements and memoranda of understanding established among them. E. The Parties acknowledge and agree that First Nations, the Métis Nation and other Aboriginal communities require support, including the necessary capacity and resources, to enable them to develop and deliver a full range of child and family services. F. The Parties acknowledge that planning, policy and program development, implementation, evaluation and decision-making must be undertaken jointly between the provincial government and First Nations, the Métis Nation and other Aboriginal communities. G. The Child, Family and Community Service Act provides that: a) Aboriginal people and communities need to be involved in the planning and delivery of services to their families and their children; b) A child’s cultural identity, kinship ties and attachment to his or her extended family and community should be preserved; and c) First Nations, the Métis Nation and other Aboriginal communities are recognized as independent entities which have a right to party status in all legal proceedings involving their children. H. The Ministry for Children and Families is committed to ensuring that its legislation, policies and services are culturally sensitive and responsive to the needs of Aboriginal governments and communities. Therefore the Parties agree as follows: 1.0 PURPOSES 1.1 The purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) is to establish a joint dialogue process regarding issues relating to the safety and well-being of Aboriginal children and families that: a) is on a government-to-government basis; b) recognizes that First Nations, the Métis Nation, Inuit and other Aboriginal Peoples assert jurisdiction over their children and families, regardless of residency; c) recognizes the importance of transferring the delivery of services to Aboriginal communities; and d) draws on the expertise of Aboriginal service delivery agencies. 1.2 The joint dialogue process will focus on: a) reducing the number of Aboriginal children in care and returning Aboriginal children to their communities where it is appropriate to do so; and b) other topics or issues agreed to by the Parties. 1.3 The joint dialogue process will be carried out through the Minister’s Aboriginal Advisory Committee, which is established in section 2.0 and is comprised of representatives of the Parties, Aboriginal service delivery agencies, and chaired by the Minister for Children and Families. 2.0 ABORIGINAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE 2.1 The Minister for Children and Families will establish an Aboriginal Advisory Committee (the “Committee”) comprised of one representative appointed by each of the following organizations: a) the Ministry for Children and Families; 2.2 Each of the organizations referred to in section 2.1 will appoint one alternate representative who will attend meetings of the Committee in the absence of the representative appointed in that section. 2.3 The role of the Committee will be to: a) establish priorities and monitor progress on reducing the number of Aboriginal children in care and returning Aboriginal children to their communities where it is appropriate to do so; b) provide advice to the Minister for Children and Families regarding the efficient and effective allocation of resources within the Ministry for Children and Families to address issues affecting Aboriginal children, families and communities; c) serve as a forum for dialogue and exchange of information among the participating organizations; d) enable the participating organizations to keep their respective constituencies informed regarding the dialogue process; and e) ensure that the full range of perspectives is examined. 2.4 The Committee will strive to seek consensus among the members of the Committee with respect to the advice it provides to the Minister for Children and Families. 2.5 The Minister for Children and Families will chair the meetings of the Committee. 2.6 The Executive Director, Aboriginal Strategy and Community Services for the Ministry for Children and Families, will act as secretary for the Committee. The secretary will be responsible for: a) preparing and distributing meeting notices and other relevant information to the members of the committee; and b) the logistics for the meetings. 2.7 Agendas for meetings of the Committee will be developed jointly by the secretary and the members of the Committee. The agendas, together with any supporting material, will be distributed at least one week in advance of meetings to enable the members of the Committee to be prepared. 2.8 The Committee will meet at least 4 times per year and will establish a schedule of meeting dates. Committee meetings may also be held as needed or at the call of the Minister for Children and Families. 2.9 The Committee will establish a technical working group(s) as needed to address issues or matters identified by the Committee. The technical working group(s) will be responsible for developing options and recommendations and providing them to the Committee. 3.0 FUNDING 3.1 The Ministry for Children and Families will provide adequate funding to support all of the activities of the Aboriginal Advisory Committee and its technical working group(s), including reimbursement for expenses in accordance with government financial policy. 3.2 The Ministry for Children and Families will allocate sufficient funding for the implementation of activities and action plans intended to achieve the purposes of this memorandum, subject to annual allocations by Treasury Board and approval by the Minister for Children and Families. 4.0 SPECIAL CLAUSES 4.1 The Parties wish to maintain an ongoing government-to-government relationship that does not derogate from or displace the bilateral nation-to-nation relationship between Aboriginal Peoples and the Government of Canada or from the Crown’s fiduciary obligation to Aboriginal Peoples. 4.2 This MOU is not intended to limit or replace any treaty, interim measures 4.3 Nothing in this MOU shall be interpreted in a manner which extinguishes, abrogates or diminishes Aboriginal or treaty rights, including Aboriginal title, which are protected under section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. 4.4 Nothing in this MOU shall be interpreted in a manner that undermines or limits the rights and responsibilities of the participating Aboriginal governments and organizations and their respective Aboriginal Policy Tables to address issues of urgent concern with any level of government. 4.5 The dialogue process under this MOU is not intended to displace the right of Aboriginal governments to be consulted by the Crown. 4.6 Nothing in this MOU shall be interpreted in a manner that implies endorsement or acceptance of provincial legislation and policies by the participating Aboriginal governments and organizations. 5.0 TERM AND REVIEW 5.1 This MOU shall come into effect when the last signatory signs this MOU, and will remain in effect for a (5) five-year period from that date (the “Term”). 5.2 This MOU and activities associated with it will be reviewed annually by the Parties during the Term. IN WITNESS WHEREOF the parties have agreed to this Memorandum of Understanding on the dates noted below: On behalf of the United Native Nations On behalf of the Métis Provincial Council (April 12th, 2001) (April 12th, 2001) On behalf of the First Nations Summit (Howard Grant) (Kathryn Teneese) (Danny Watts) (April 12th, 2001) On behalf of the Province of On behalf of the Province of (David Zirnheldt) (Ed John) (April 12th, 2001) (April 12th, 2001) The following agencies support this Memorandum of Understanding as members of the Aboriginal Advisory Committee: On behalf of the Assembly of First Nations On behalf of the BC Association of (Herb George) (Grace Nielsen) (April 12th, 2001) (April 12th, 2001) On behalf of the Federation of Aboriginal On behalf of the First Nations Agency (A. John Jardin) unsigned (April 12th, 2001) n/a On behalf of the Native Courtworker and On behalf of the United Aboriginal Child (Hugh Breaker) (Tom Lalonde)
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