The Government of Canada is committed to closing the gap in quality of life between Aboriginal peoples and other Canadians. It is important to know where improvements have been made and where significant gaps exist. To do this, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada has developed the Registered Indian Human Development Index and the First Nations Community Well-Being Index, two research tools that measure the well-being of First Nations individuals and communities.

Much progress has been made. The numbers show we are closing the gap but not fast enough.

Registered Indian Human Development Index

The Registered Indian Human Development Index (HDI) was developed to compare the well-being of registered Indians and other Canadians. It is based on the United Nations Human Development Index which combines measures of education, income and life expectancy.

The gap in quality of life between registered Indians and other Canadians narrowed from 1981 to 2001. Education accounted for most of this gap reduction because more First Nations members had completed primary and secondary school.

Despite improvements, the gap remained similar from 1996 to 2001. First Nations well-being is still considerably behind that of other Canadians. The widest gap is in the Prairie provinces, where First Nations make up a higher proportion of the total population.

First Nations Community Well-Being Index

The First Nations Community Well-being Index (CWB) uses similar methods as the human development index but measures well-being at the community level. Indicators of education, labour force activity, income and housing are combined into a well-being score that is calculated for 541 First Nations and 4,144 other Canadian communities.

Half of all First Nations communities score in the lower range of the index compared with 3% of other Canadian communities. One First Nation appears in the top 100 Canadian communities, while 92 appear in the bottom 100.

Well-being scores vary more among First Nations than other Canadian communities. Many First Nations communities that score above the First Nations average are concentrated in southern British Columbia, southeastern Ontario and the Yukon.

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