Federal government faces human rights complaint over Indigenous procurement system – National [Video]

The federal government is facing a human rights complaint over a multi-billion dollar program meant to set aside government work for First Nations, Métis and Inuit companies, Global News has learned.

The Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation Tribal Council is appealing to the Canadian Human Rights Commission to weigh in on the Indigenous Business Directory (IBD), a list of purportedly Indigenous-owned and -operated companies.

The IBD is where federal departments and agencies go to find Indigenous companies from which to purchase products and services, with an eye to meeting Ottawa’s policy of at least five per cent of its procurement going to First Nations, Métis and Inuit companies.

Global News, in partnership with the First Nations University of Canada, revealed in August that Ottawa has awarded billions in federal work to companies without always requiring bidders to prove they First Nations, Inuit or Métis.

The tribal council’s complaint, obtained by Global News, …