Program to grant 150 scholarships to Indigenous health-care students through SCO partnership

A program to help fund the post-secondary education of Indigenous students in Manitoba willaward150 scholarships to train new health-care professionals over the next five years.

Grand Chief Jerry Danielsof the Southern Chiefs Organization said scholarships will be awarded annually to 30 students who want to pursue a post-secondary career in health care. The total of 150 scholarshipswill go to students fromthe 33 First Nation communities represented by the SCO,

"We believe this will make all the difference," Daniels said at a news conference Tuesday.

"First Nations health-care professionals understand our people and our culture and are able to take a holistic approach to health care," he said,

Currently, fewerthan 1 per cent of physicians in Canada identify as Indigenous, according to the Canadian Medical Association.The SCO hopes this program can go a long way in addressing health-care delivery and shorter life expectancy among First Nation communities.

The $3,000 scholarships are being funded by a donation from Larry Vickar, a member of the Business Council of Manitoba, that was matched by the SCO and the province, amounting to a one-time funding total of $450,000 for the program.

Supporting reconciliation

"They're supporting reconciliation in a meaningful way for our First Nations youth while building a stronger health-care system for everyone," Daniels said.

He said the scholarships will be paving the way in responding to call to action 23 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which calls upon all levels of government to increasing the number of First Nations professionals working in health care while also addressingcall to action 92, directed to the corporate sector to ensure First Nation people have equitable access to jobs.

Daniels said he hopes the scholarships will help reduce the 11-year life expectancy gap existing between First Nations and other Manitobans.

A report released in 2019says First Nations women live on average to age 72, compared to the rest of Manitoba women, who live to age 83. First Nations men live on average to age 68, while the rest of Manitoba men live to age 79, on average.

"Indigenous people are dying 11 years earlier, that needs to stop," Daniels said.

'We're here for you': SCO Grand Chief

Rene Cable, minister of advanced education and training, told reporters at the news conference the fundingis "historic," adding it will also go a long way to rebuild Manitoba's health-care workforce while ensuring it is more reflective of the communities accessing health-care services in the province.

"Not everybody has a linear path through post-secondary education, and we need to acknowledge that and do everything we can to help people achieve their goals," she said.

Applications for the 2025-2026academic year are open from Nov. 20 to May 31, 2025, and can be submitted through the Business Council of Manitoba website or by submitting a hard copy.

"To the youth, we're here for you, we want you to get an education," Daniels said.

"We're going to work very hard to give you every single opportunity."