The Inuit people are facing a major housing crisis, says the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada.
At least 5,000 new houses are needed to meet the shortfall just in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, says a report from the Inuit Tapirisat. No one knows how many extra houses are needed in northern Labrador, which is the area worst hit by the housing crunch.
Inuit commonly live two and three generations in the same three or four-bedroom bungalow, says the report, submitted to the federal government in May. Overcrowding and poor quality housing contribute to the death rate, infant mortality rate and poor health of Inuit, says the Inuit political body.
The Inuit also have the fastest growing population in Canada of any group and unemployment rates of up to 80 per cent in some communities. The poverty means that many Inuit cannot afford anything but social housing, says an article in Windspeaker.
The Inuit Tapirisat’s harshest words were directed at the government of Newfoundland, which hasn’t even done a study of how bad the housing situation is in Inuit communities. “Labrador Inuit are living in Third World conditions,” says the report.
