VICTORIA (Canada): The City of Victoria has allocated $40,000 to a relocation program that assists Indigenous residents who are unhoused to return to their home communities. The funding supports the Peer 2 Peer Indigenous Society, an outreach group led by a Métis woman with lived experience of homelessness, to continue the initiative. The program connects individuals with their families and communities, arranges transportation and aims to help participants leave street encampments in the city’s downtown area. Nearly a third of people experiencing homelessness in Greater Victoria are Indigenous, according to recent regional counts, and many report they are from outside Vancouver Island. The organization says it has already helped several people return to communities on Vancouver Island and in other provinces, with additional participants seeking support.
The city’s decision forms part of its broader Community Safety and Wellbeing Plan, which commits funding to address homelessness, public disorder and public safety concerns in the downtown core. Victoria has faced sustained challenges with visible homelessness, particularly along Pandora Avenue, where encampments have prompted concern from residents, businesses and local officials. Alongside municipal funding, the city and the province have expanded shelter capacity and advanced transitional and supportive housing projects. Despite these measures, advocates say a lack of affordable housing, culturally appropriate supports and long-term services continues to disproportionately affect Indigenous people experiencing homelessness in the region.
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