Canadians and Their Money

Capacity-building activities could include staff training and development, informationand knowledge sharing among practitioners, and an annual professional developmentconference. Governments might wish to begin with a pilot project to ensure that thefinancial literacy education offered is useful and relevant for Canadians and thatthe voluntary organizations delivering the services have adequate capacity.Governments are also encouraged to partner with business, where appropriate,to build the capacity of voluntary organizations.Recommendation 14The Task Force recommends that the Government of Canada, as well as provincial andterritorial governments, invest in the capacity of the voluntary sector to offer financialinformation, learning and guidance to Canadians.First Nations Capacity BuildingA number of First Nations organizations in Canada – such as the AboriginalFinancial Officers Association, the Assembly of First Nations and the National Centrefor First Nations Governance – are involved in helping First Nations communitiesbuild their economic capacity to reach their full potential. These organizations,which range from federal Crown corporations to not-for-profit agencies, haveexperienced and educated Aboriginal professionals“…when you’re expecting to communicatewith Aboriginal/Inuit populations, they need who provide services that span the country.to do the communicating. So we have toinvest resources…in those populations andResearch shows that financial literacy – and basic literacythey have to control those resources.”– Centre for Northern Families more broadly – is a significant challenge for Aboriginalcommunities, who represent approximately four percent 26of the Canadian population. Institutional obstacles, historical and racialdiscrimination barriers, a lower overall level of educational attainment, andcultural barriers all combine to hinder their progress in the Canadian economy.To better understand this context and guide our thinking on a way forward, theTask Force commissioned research by Dominique Collin, who has been involved inAboriginal access to capital, banking, institution and business development issues26 Statistics Canada. (2006). Census. Retrieved from www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/index-eng.cfm52TASK FORCE ON FINANCIAL LITERACY – III. Lifelong Learning