Excerpts

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Today, the First Nations Leadership Council (the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, the First Nations Summit, and the B.C. Assembly of First Nations) and the governments of British Columbia and Canada gathered to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on early learning and child care for First Nations in British Columbia.

This MOU is an important step on the path to reconciliation. The goal is to support the self-determination of First Nations in British Columbia and advance First Nations’ jurisdiction in relation to early learning and child care.

The First Nations Leadership Council, British Columbia and Canada recognize that First Nations families and children are best supported by early learning and child care programs and services that are designed and led by their community, and respond to local cultures, languages, traditions, practices and laws. Having access to these programs and services is instrumental in creating a foundation for a child’s cultural identity and sense of self.

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“Caring for our children is a sacred responsibility, one that ensures our continued existence as Indigenous Peoples. Our joint early learning and child care work starts by acknowledging and honouring our own ways of knowing, being and doing. This tripartite agreement is more than the paper it is written on—it is our opportunity to take meaningful action in creating the future that our children, families and communities deserve.”

– Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President, Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs 

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This MOU supports the vision and principles of the First Nations Early Learning and Child Care Framework, co-developed and jointly released by the Government of Canada and the Assembly of First Nations in 2018, as well as the Multilateral Early Learning and Child Care Framework developed and jointly released by the Government of Canada and provincial/territorial governments in 2017.

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