Indigenous Services Canada Restores Travel Funding for Residential School Survivors' Counseling in NWT and Nunavut

Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) announced that funding has been secured to reimburse travel costs for residential school survivors, their families, and mental‑health counsellors in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut for the remainder of the fiscal year. The payment covers both in‑person and virtual appointments, responding to a four‑month suspension that left many remote clients unable to access in‑person support.

Counsellors such as Raymond Pidzamecky warned that the funding cut had severely impacted elders and others in isolated communities lacking reliable internet, while Dene National Chief George Mackenzie and NWT MLA Jane Weyallon Armstrong criticized the lack of consultation and the colonial approach of the earlier decision. ISC says the restored funding will enable continued service delivery while a longer‑term plan is developed.