7/29/2019 First Nations Statistics

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First Nations Statistics taken from unicef

In Canada, Aboriginal Children are:7 times more likely to die in infancy than others

50 times more likely to be hospitalized with preventable illnesses such as chicken pox

Only half will complete high school Twice the number of Inuit and Metis children live in poverty than do other Canadian

children48% of the Aboriginal population is children and youth31% of non-Aboriginal population is children and youth1 in 4 children in First Nations communities lives in poverty, a rate more than doublethat of Canadian children on average.Much of this is a result of decades of policies that dislocated children from families andperpetuated disparity, generation after generation.Canada ranks 3rd in applying the Human Development Index (HDI), out of 177countries.

Canada ranks 68th in First Nation communities in applying the HDI7 times more likely to become a teen parent than non-aboriginal teensHave 20% lower immunization rates than the general the population and First Nationschildren subsequently suffer from higher rates of vaccine-preventable diseases38% of deaths were attributed to suicide for First Nations youth aged 10-19. 1999, thesuicide rate among First Nations was 2.1 times higher than the overall Canadian rate.5-10 times the rates of sexually transmitted diseases

Early parenting increases the vulnerability of individuals and communities because theyare already disadvantaged socio-economically and have limited access to education,employment and formal child care.

The leading cause of infant mortality in First Nations populations is sudden infant deathsyndrome, which is linked to maternal smoking, climatic situations and socio-economicfactors, such as sub-standard housing.There is a 22% gap gap in funding child welfare services for First Nations andCanadian childrenMore Aboriginal children are in government care today that during the peak years ofresidential schooling eraIn 2003, the UN Committee expressed deep concern about the health of CanadianAboriginal children, including the lack of accessible health care, high rate of fetal alcoholspectrum disorder, and rate of youth suicide and diabetes that is among the highest inthe world.

In almost all health status indicators (measures of child health, such as diabetes andsuicide rates) and in the determinants of health and well-being (influences such aspoverty and access to clean water), Aboriginal children fall well below the nationalaverages for Canadian children.