Population boom for Metis

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Aboriginal organizations responded quickly to the release of Statistics Canada's 2001 census results last month, which shows a 22.2 per cent increase over five years in the number of people identifying themselves as having some Aboriginal ancestry. Aboriginal people now account for 4.4 per cent of Canada's population.

The census shows 976,300 people identified as a North American Indian, Metis or Inuit in 2001. Practically all Aboriginal groups stressed that all levels of government need to step up their timetable to meet the social and economic needs of Aboriginal youth under 25, in particular, which the census shows account for more than half the Aboriginal population.

The median age for non-Aboriginal people in 2001 was 37.7 years, compared to 23.5 for First Nations, and 20.6 for Inuit.

The city of Winnipeg reported the highest Aboriginal population, 55,760 out of a total of 661,730 residents.

Edmonton was second, with 40,930 Aboriginal people in a city of 927,020. Vancouver was third, reporting 38,855 Aboriginal people in a population of 1,967,480.

Inuit people, representing five per cent of the Aboriginal total, number 45,070, a 12 per cent increase from the last census in 1996. In contrast, Canada's non-Aboriginal population grew 3.4 per cent.

One half of the Inuit live in Nunavut, where they represent 85 per cent of the total population.

Statistics Canada attributes the significant Aboriginal population increase partly to improvements in health, a longer lifespan, and more births occurring than deaths, according to Andy Siggner, senior advisor on Aboriginal statistics for Statistics Canada.

Siggner pointed out there also has been an improvement in census participation over the years.

In 1986, he said, 136 reserves did not participate; in 1996 it was 77 reserves, and by 2001, only 30 of more than 1,170 inhabited reserves did not complete the census. He said Stats Canada "maybe missed 144,000" Aboriginal people.

The biggest surprise was the number of Metis enumerated. That population grew by 43 per cent and represents 30 per cent of the total Aboriginal number. One-third of this group is under the age of 14 and one-third of Metis children live in single-parent families. In urban centres, where two-thirds of Metis live, 42 per cent of Metis children live with one parent.

Audrey Poitras, interim president of the Metis National Council, stated in a release, "These latest numbers are beginning to present a more realistic portrait of the Metis Nation in Canada," which she said were previously under-reported. She called on provincial and federal governments to increase funds for Metis programs and services.

Siggner attributes part of the increase in Metis numbers to "fertility rate," but a bigger portion he indicated is likely attributed to a rising "cultural consciousness" resulting in a significant increase in people who identify as Metis. In Ontario, he said the number of Metis increased 124 per cent in five years.