Action Plan for the Renewal and Expansion of DFO’s Indigenous Programs

On this page

• Introduction
• Broader context – DFO-Coast Guard Reconciliation Strategy
• Indigenous programs
• Annex: IPR Recommendations and Implementation Actions

Introduction

Background

Since 1992, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) has administered a growing suite of programming focused on capacity development and enhanced participation by Indigenous people in commercial fishery operations and collaborative fisheries management. Program offerings include the Atlantic Commercial Fisheries Initiative (AICFI), the Pacific Commercial Fisheries Initiative (PICFI), the Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy (AFS) and its Aboriginal Fishery Guardian component (AFG), and the Aboriginal Aquatic Resource and Oceans Management (AAROM) program.

Budget 2017 provided DFO with $250M over five years and $62.2M annually thereafter to review, renew and expand its Indigenous programs. Key renewal elements include permanent funding and northern expansion for the commercial fisheries programs and increased permanent funding for the collaborative programs.

In May 2017, DFO began working with Indigenous executives through the National Indigenous Fisheries Institute to co-design and co-launch a process, based on the principles of co-development, co-design and co-delivery, to review these programs and provide guidance for their renewal or, in the case of the Northern Integrated Commercial Fisheries Initiative, its initial design and implementation. Indigenous Program Review (IPR) was formally launched in October 2017.

Given the tremendous complexity of this undertaking and the importance of these programs to Indigenous communities and peoples, a phased approach was taken to this technical review. Phase one, which ended on May 22, 2018, provided recommendations for the Atlantic and Pacific Integrated Commercial Fisheries Initiatives (AICFI and PICFI) and the Aboriginal Aquatic Resources and Oceans Management (AAROM) Program. Phase two ended exactly one year later with recommendations on the Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy (AFS), Aboriginal Fishery Guardians (AFG), and the Northern Integrated Fisheries Initiative (NICFI), which straddled both phase one and two. Implementation has also followed a phased approach, starting with the programs included in phase one.

Moving forward with renewal – an Action Plan

In the news release that accompanied the public release of the Indigenous Program Review (IPR) Phase Two Report, DFO accepted the overall findings of the review and committed to return in a few months with a multiyear action plan for implementation.
The Action Plan which follows provides an overview of the actions underway or planned to renew DFO’s Indigenous programs and respond to the IPR recommendations. Enclosed is a general overview of the actions being taken by each program, along with some key related recommendations. More detailed descriptions of how DFO is responding to each IPR recommendation and how these link to overall program renewal can be found in the annex.

Since the IPR phase one report was released in May 2018, progress has been made on the renewal of the commercial programs and the Aboriginal Aquatic Resource and Oceans Management (AAROM) program. In these cases the overall pathway to renewal is fairly well defined, and the department is able to report on some major progress already made (e.g., launch of the Northern Integrated Commercial Fisheries Initiative and the AAROM new entrants process).
Moving forward with AFS and AFG renewal will take longer, given the complexity and importance of these programs to Indigenous communities, as well as the fact that the second IPR report was only recently released. Moreover, funding for these programs will continue to ramp up over the next few years, fueling implementation. And, of course, DFO will not be undertaking this alone, as the effort will require continued co-development, co-design and co-delivery. Thus, the initial Action Plan for AFS and AFG will identify broad next steps, rather than detailed plans or descriptions of program redesign. This Action Plan can be updated as implementation moves forward and DFO reports back annually. This will be a stepwise, multiyear undertaking.

While the primary focus of IPR was on DFO’s suite of Indigenous programming, a number of the recommendations that have emerged are cross-cutting and are of potential relevance to other areas of the department. Fortunately, many of these line up with DFO-Coast Guard’s new Reconciliation Strategy, which will provide a further vehicle for moving some elements of IPR and program renewal forward. This fact is reflected in certain proposed or related actions, but, like AFS and AFG, some will take several years to implement.

Organization of the Action Plan

There are three main sections to this Action Plan:

• Broader Context – DFO-Coast Guard Reconciliation Strategy outlines the larger, department-wide context for the Action Plan and possible pathways towards addressing the more systemic issues identified by IPR, including actions beyond the scope of Indigenous Programs.
• Indigenous Programs presents specific but also broader strategic objectives and actions being taken to renew each program. In many cases, there is not always a one-to-one relationship between the IPR recommendations and the renewal activities (or “streams”) identified and in fact one area of renewal may address multiple recommendations.
• Annex: IPR Recommendations and Implementation Actions provides the full list of IPR recommendations (one hundred and forty-one in total) and the proposed actions to be taken.

Annual updates and development and implementation of a scorecard

This Action Plan will grow and evolve over the coming years. In particular, AFS and AFG are still at the early planning stages, and will require extensive updates on planned actions. In addition, the DFO-Coast Guard Reconciliation Strategy is being developed and will evolve over time to adapt to changing needs and feedback from Indigenous partners and stakeholders, all the while building on achieved successes and experience, including incorporating and addressing elements of the Action Plan. And while there is an immediate opportunity to review the broader IPR recommendations in the context of the Reconciliation Strategy, including potential areas of alignment, both the Strategy and the Action Plan will be developing their own results and accountability tools, (e.g., the long-term outcomes of the Strategy as reported through the departmental results framework versus the nearer term annual updates and scorecard developed for the Action Plan). As the Strategy and the Action Plan co-evolve over time, their results and accountability tools are expected to increasingly inform and serve as complementary to one another.

Renewing DFO’s suite of Indigenous programs and addressing the broader recommendations in the IPR reports is a multi-year undertaking that will continue to evolve and mature through co-development, co-design and co-delivery activities. Consequently, DFO will return each year to update this “evergreen” Action Plan and report on planned and completed actions.

At the same time, IPR and the recent DFO evaluation of AFS and AAROM point towards the need for improved program performance metrics and the importance of incorporating Indigenous definitions of success, both into the metrics and into DFO reporting more generally. With this in mind, DFO will seek, over the next year, to co-develop and co-deliver a scorecard to report on program performance and the overall progress made by the department as it relates to program renewal and implementation of the DFO-Coast Guard Reconciliation Strategy.

Broader context – DFO-Coast Guard Reconciliation Strategy

The results and recommendations emerging from the Indigenous Program Review (IPR) process are extremely timely for DFO-Coast Guard. Department-wide a shift is occurring towards a more comprehensive, whole-of-portfolio approach to reconciliation that reflects lessons learned and makes a long-term commitment to reconciliation. IPR provides further guidance and inspiration for this work.
The Department has been developing a DFO-Coast Guard Reconciliation Strategy (Strategy) that aligns with whole-of-government reconciliation work. The Strategy will serve three primary purposes:

• a guide to help employees understand why and how reconciliation matters in their day-to-day work;
• a results and accountability tool to ensure that all departmental programs and internal services are taking action and that the portfolio as a whole is tracking and reporting progress publicly through the departmental results framework beginning in 2020-2021; and,
• an external communication, engagement, and partnering tool that will both demonstrate the department’s commitment to reconciliation and provide a coherent frame around which partners and stakeholders can orient departmental actions and progress.

The Strategy was developed based on current federal policy directions, feedback obtained through past and current engagement and consultation with Indigenous peoples and departmental stakeholders, and feedback from officials of DFO-Coast Guard and other federal departments and agencies. Nevertheless, it is meant to be evergreen and will continue to evolve as it adapts to changing needs and feedback from Indigenous partners and stakeholders, and builds upon achieved successes and experience. As such, there is an immediate opportunity to review the broader recommendations coming out of the IPR process and how the Strategy presently aligns or should be made to align with them.

The following list of seven IPR recommendations cut across the entire DFO-Coast Guard portfolio, and will influence the actions taken by the Department as it moves forward with the Strategy:

1. Demonstrate the renewed relationship to implement the recommendations made during Indigenous Program Review.
2. Shift to a shared capacity model to end the duplication of services best delivered by Indigenous people in their communities through an Indigenous procurement policy, A-base funding for Indigenous knowledge and science, and co-development of data-sharing agreements and parameters.
3. Ensure timely funding, annual planning cycles and consistent reporting in all DFO-Coast Guard contribution agreements with Indigenous groups and communities so work plans and project proposals are approved and funding begins in the first quarter of the fiscal year – and reporting requirements are aligned to the reports that Indigenous communities, groups and enterprises are already giving to their leadership and members.
4. Use a contribution agreement model and standardize terms and conditions across all sectors to make DFO-Coast Guard funding programs more predictable to Indigenous recipients and seek the advice of the Indigenous Affairs and Reconciliation Directorate about how to most effectively roll-out funding programs that are open to Indigenous recipients.
5. Align performance metrics of programs and activities to Indigenous definitions of success which have been outlined in all three Indigenous Program Review recommendation reports.
6. Play your part in building DFO-Coast Guard’s relationship with Indigenous peoples by taking the Indigenous Fisheries 101 training and participating in other internal human resource strategies and training related to working with and understanding Indigenous peoples and communities.
7. Participate in the partnership being established between DFO-Coast Guard and Employment and Social Development Canada to advance Indigenous training and skills development programs offered through the Department and Agency along career progression paths.

Indigenous programs

This section outlines the major actions being taken to renew and expand the suite of Indigenous commercial and collaborative programs. This is not an exhaustive list of all actions being taken and it will continue to grow and evolve as renewal continues over the next few year.

Cross-cutting issues and actions

It is recognized that many of the IPR recommendations cut across all of the Indigenous Programs and may in some cases apply to other program areas as well. Over the years, DFO has sought to increase coordination and consistency between its Indigenous programs and while some gains have been made, much remains to be done.
IPR, by addressing all of the Indigenous programs together, marked a significant step towards building greater alignment between these programs, while directly pointing to areas for improvements across the programs. As program renewal moves forward, increasing efforts will be made to expand and coordinate the approaches taken across the programs, including in areas such as:

• Expanding the co-development, co-design, and co-delivery approach, building on AICFI/PICFI and IPR
• Maximizing Departmental and other Federal Government collaboration (also a key recommendation in the most recent evaluation of the AAROM and AFS program)
• Recognizing and supporting Indigenous procurement opportunities
• Reflecting Indigenous definitions of success in the desired outcomes of the program
• Improving tracking and reporting on program success and progress on capacity development (also linked to key recommendations in the most recent evaluation of the AAROM and AFS program)
• Supporting retention and succession planning
• Enabling greater networking, knowledge exchange and partnerships between program participants
• Continuing to strengthen program administration, including the development and provision of training to DFO and program participants on contribution administration
• Developing a coordinated and strategic approach to address sector-wide training needs

Some of these will warrant pan-program actions or projects (e.g., training on contribution administration and development of a coordinated sector-wide training strategy). The following program-specific overviews, along with the annex, also provide specific examples of where each program (often building on a shared and coordinated approach) are addressing these issues and specific recommendations raised by IPR.

AAROM Program Renewal

New funding: $6.8M per year (by 2020-21)
Total funding: $19.9M per year (by 2020-21)
Key Treasury Board submission priorities:

• enhancement of existing AAROM capacity and activities
• establishment of new AAROM departments in strategic locations to address significant gaps in AAROM network coverage (over 5 to 10 years)

Key IPR recommendations related to overall program design:

• expand the network to geographic areas not served by a group
• raise awareness and promote AAROM department services and network
• ensure timely funding, annual planning cycles and consistent reporting
• standardize contribution agreements and their terms and conditions
• invest in Indigenous knowledge systems and enable networking opportunities among groups to learn from best practices
• establish an Indigenous-led management committee similar to those used in the commercial programs to oversee project proposals, program delivery, and reporting

Overview:

Implementation of AAROM renewal is following an incremental approach. Initial activities have focused on launching a new entrants process to address major geographic gaps in the AAROM network and supporting networking among AAROM departments. Further details are provided below and the annex outlines responses to specific IPR recommendations and links to broader renewal activities.

Overall, a more strategic approach to supporting AAROM departments is being taken, focusing on four main objectives:

1. Develop and maintain robust AAROM departments (core platform/capacity)
2. Fund, improve and diversify project activities in (funded by AAROM)
3. Support a strong network of AAROM departments (including sharing and developing capacity as well as growing co-delivery capacity)
4. Promote access to other funding (including other programs and contracting)

Renewal streams	Key actions/milestones
Enhancements to existing agreements (started August 2019)	$2M in funding enhancements implemented covering 100% of watershed and technical/advisory AAROM departments and ensuring more equitable funding for core staffing and operations (e.g., closing historical gaps between AAROM departments).
New entrants (started January 2019)	Launched new entrants process and preparing to fund capacity development and planning in support of the development and launch on new AAROM departments covering key gaps in the AAROM network.
AAROM fund (launch Fall 2019 for 2020-21)	Preparing to launch fund, which will support ongoing capacity development for activities beginning in 2020-21.
AAROM network activities (started 2018-19)	Co-developed, co-designed and co-delivered inaugural annual operational meeting of AAROM department directors and developing marketing and partnership toolkit to promote the network.
Co-design, co-delivery (started with IPR and ramping up)	Started with joint National Steering Committee for the National AAROM meeting (ongoing) and will grow to include the establishment of AAROM management committee and Application Review Committee (2019-20).
Administrative improvements (ongoing ramp up)	Through implementation of new governance charters, guidelines and training, moving to implement consistent and effective administrative practices and culture.