Program profile
2.1 Program Description
Operating since 1991, the IJP is a federally-led initiative that is cost-shared with all thirteen provinces and territories and delivered in partnership with Indigenous communities. The Program aims to address the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the CJS, both as offenders and as victims, and to increase access to culturally-relevant justice services and options.
IJP was renewed seven times: in 1996, 2002, 2007 (with enhanced funding), 2012, 2013, and 2014. With Budget 2017, it was renewed on an ongoing basis at existing funding levels ($12.7 million per year) to provide long term and stable investment in the Program.
Overview of Program Components
The Program has two funding components:
- Community-Based Justice Fund: Through this fund, the IJP directly supports 211 community-based justice programs serving 650 communities across the country. Funded programs work to address root causes of crime and deliver programming that reflects the justice values, traditions and culture of their community. Their activities can fall at any point along the justice continuum including prevention, pre-charge, post-charge, post-sentence and reintegration. Programs use restorative and traditional Indigenous justice processes that bring together victim, offender and community to focus on repairing harm and holding offenders accountable. IJP programs work in close partnership with justice officials, including police, Crown and judges.
- Capacity-Building Fund: This smaller fund is designed to support capacity-building efforts in Indigenous communities, particularly as they relate to building increased knowledge and skills for the establishment and management of community-based justice programs.
Program and Policy Development
IJD staff engage with Indigenous, as well as provincial and territorial partners, to enhance the Program and to provide input into other federal government programs and policies impacting Indigenous people. This engagement occurs through several established and ad hoc working groups, as well as other direct contact in the day-to-day management of funding agreements. Regular and ongoing engagement with Indigenous community partners not only provides input and direction on how to improve the Program, but also invaluable information regarding the needs of justice-involved individuals (such as offenders or victims) and the justice priorities of the Indigenous communities.
Governance and Key Stakeholders
The Department’s Indigenous Justice Directorate (IJD) is responsible for developing and maintaining provincial and territorial partnerships. IJD staff and provincial and territorial partners work together to assess and address emerging justice issues and gaps in service, as well as develop new community-based justice programs.
As partners, provincial and territorial governments:
- Provide investment in the IJP community-based justice programs (fiscal and/or in-kind);
- Provide regional specific knowledge and perspectives, integral program support and partnerships (e.g., victim services, corrections, probations, policing) on a regional basis; and
- Participate in and co-chair the IJP Federal-Provincial-Territorial Working Group (FPT WG), which serves as a policy forum for ongoing monitoring of inter-jurisdictional issues that concern the IJP.
Indigenous communities and Indigenous non-governmental/non-profit organizations (IJP funding recipients) design and deliver community-based justice programs that meet the needs of the specific communities they serve, and are responsible for meeting the reporting requirements in the contribution agreement. They provide valuable information and feedback to the Department and provincial/territorial governments on community justice needs; and partner with stakeholders at the provincial/territorial and community level to ensure program effectiveness. They also may contribute resources, both fiscal and in-kind, to the operation of their community-based justice programs.
Other federal government departments are also involved including:
- Public Safety Canada which provides Indigenous-specific funding in justice focussed areas including: community-safety planning, crime prevention, reintegration and community corrections, as well as First Nations and Inuit Policing.
- Correctional Service of Canada which may work with community-based justice programs to support local justice committees in the reintegration planning and support that is required at the community level for offenders released under section 84 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act;
- Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) which provides pre-charge referrals to community-based justice programs in appropriate circumstances and participates with the programs through regular communication, membership on program committees, involvement in community justice panels, etc.
Program Resources
During the period covered by the evaluation, Justice allocated approximately $72.6 million to the Program.
| Categories | FY 2016-17 | FY 2017-18 | FY 2018-19 | FY 2019-20 | FY 2020-21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grants and Contributions |
$13,581,043 |
$12,700,000 |
$13,009,920 |
$13,056,109 |
$12,700,000 |
Salary |
$1,197,840 |
$1,769,237 |
$1,444,850 |
$1,008,006 |
$1,099,134 |
Operations and Maintenance |
$102,514 |
$130,189 |
$396,719 |
$248,000 |
$133,000 |
Total |
$14,881,397 |
$14,599,426 |
$14,851,489 |
$14,312,115 |
$13,932,134 |
Source: Department of Justice Financial Data
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