THUNDER BAY – The co-sponsors and author of a study that shows Indigenous people and businesses have a $1.55-billion economic impact in Thunder Bay are hopeful the number will help shift the narrative.
Michael Fox, president and CEO of Indigenous Community Engagement, said the idea behind the study was to create a baseline.
It was also important to showcase just how important Indigenous people and businesses are to communities like Thunder Bay.
“Sometimes we focus on the Indigenous social profile and not the Indigenous economic profile. I think we wanted to showcase another part of the Indigenous community here in our city and our region and how they support the local economy,” Fox said.
The $1.55 billion represents about seven per cent of the overall economy in Thunder Bay.
“Indigenous people are not just consumers of goods and services, they’re actually producers of goods and service and I think that’s what this report is all about,” Fox said.
The report might be an eye opener for many in Thunder Bay, he added. While business agencies, like the Community Economic Development Commission, which co-sponsored the study with Fort William First Nation, the Anishnawbe Business Professional Association and the Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund, are keenly aware of the importance of Indigenous people and businesses to the community.
Others may not, he said.
Jason Raysevich, president of the ABPA, said the number is impressive, and the report can be used to support stronger position for Indigenous businesses and help build growth over the next several years. It’s also a chance to shed a positive light on the Indigenous community, by letting the public know just how important it is to the local economy.
“What we see in the media and public have been based on systemic issues and discriminatory issues against Indigenous peoples, and the lack of support. Now what we’re seeing is a start to improve the narrative to the focus of the contributions of Indigenous peoples to the city,” Raysevich said.
“When we think of some of the issues that we face, related to our local and our regional economy around the COVID pandemic, it was clear the Indigenous spend has supported some of those industries and businesses from going under at that time.”
The numbers, the most recent available, measured the economic impact in 2020.
Jamie Taylor, CEO at the CEDC, said they’re likely much larger today.
“They will likely continue to grow, based on the trends happening in our community,” Taylor said.
“And from a CEDC perspective, I think we wanted to showcase a different narrative, one where Indigenous people are contributing to our economy. It’s very easy to talk about negativity, but it’s sometimes harder to talk about the positive things and this is a very positive thing for our community.”
Broken down, the numbers show $376 million spent on public administration, $232 million on construction and manufacturing, $234 million through other industries not singled out, $76 million retail trade, $25 million in wholesale trade, $86 million on education $76 million on agriculture and mining, $101 million in finance, insurance and real estate and $75 million on accommodation, food, arts and entertainment.
