Native Women's Association of Canada Website

2.0 PROGRAM: ABORIGINAL FISHERIES STRATEGYThe Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy was developed in response to a 1990 SupremeCourt case (Sparrow), which found that an Aboriginal right to fish for food, social andceremonial purposes has priority, after conservation, over other users of fisheriesresources, and that the right is communal.Included in this strategy are several initiatives to increase the involvement of Aboriginalpeople in fisheries and fish habitat management as well as to allow limited participationin commercial fishing and related economic opportunities. Agreements are negotiatedwith First Nations in areas where Fisheries and Oceans Canada manages the fishery(British Columbia and the Atlantic Provinces).The Aboriginal Affairs Directorate, in Fisheries and Oceans Canada, also participates innegotiations of fisheries provisions in land claims and self-government agreements.2.1 Eligibility:The strategy is accessible to Aboriginal groups in areas of Canada where Fisheries andOceans Canada manages the fishery for marine and anadromous species. It does notextend to inland lakes and rivers. It applies to those groups who have been able toestablish their traditional use of the resource prior to European contact. In some cases,access has been granted to Non-Status and Status Indian organizations representingoff-reserve people.2.2 Contact:Call: (613) 991-0181 Fax: (613) 993-7651 Internet: http://www.ncr.dfo.caWrite: Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy, Fisheries and Oceans Canada 200 Kent Street OttawaOntario K1A 0E6Pg. 148