Question Period Note: Indigenous Procurement

N.A.

• The Government of Canada is working hard with Indigenous partners to support Indigenous innovation and opportunities for entrepreneurs, including implementing Indigenous procurement initiatives to reduce barriers and level the playing field for Indigenous businesses.

• Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) ensures the integrity of Indigenous procurement by verifying that businesses meet the eligibility requirements to be registered within the Indigenous Business Directory on a regular basis, through audits and routine contacts.

The Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business (PSIB) launched in 1996. It limits bidding in procurements to Indigenous businesses that meet PSIB eligibility criteria. To be considered for a federal contract that is limited to bidding under PSIB, a business must be listed on the Government of Canada’s Indigenous Business Directory (IBD) or a Modern Treaty business list.

To register on the IBD, a business must undergo an eligibility assessment and demonstrate that it is both 51% Indigenous owned and controlled. It is the responsibility of the IBD applicant to provide documentation (i.e., status cards, joint-venture agreements etc.) to complete this assessment. Once a business is actively registered, it is then eligible to bid on opportunities that have been set-aside under the PSIB program. For contracts awarded under PSIB, the successful Indigenous contractor must be listed on the IBD or a Modern Treaty business list and satisfy PSIB’s 33% Indigenous content requirement during the life of the contract. This means that the IBD contractor awarded the contract must, either by itself or in conjunction with Indigenous sub-contractors, deliver at least 33% of the total value of the work under the contract. In most cases, the IBD contractor will certify in their bid that they will meet the requirements of PSIB, including the 33% Indigenous content requirement, and the IBD Contractor will also agree that it may be subject to a post-award audit to determine its compliance with PSIB requirements. Post-award audits are usually only undertaken by ISC upon request by the requisitioning department’s contracting authority.

If pressed on the Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business

• The Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business limits competition for some federal contracts to Indigenous owned and controlled businesses to encourage Indigenous procurement.

• After listening to Indigenous partners, ISC is actively collaborating with those partners to co-develop a new transformative Indigenous procurement strategy and implement improvements to the Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business’ current operations. If pressed on Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business contracts awarded to information technology businesses in the national capital region

• While the Government of Canada has many programs that provide capacity and financial supports to Indigenous businesses, the Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business is a strategy for the government to procure necessary goods and services from Indigenous businesses who compete for and win contracts.

• Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business contracts are tendered for bidding in an open market for Indigenous businesses from coast to coast to coast.