Province to launch external review of CFS funding
Posted July 28, 2026 5:19 pm.
Last Updated July 28, 2026 6:33 pm.
The province is in the process of launching an independent review into child welfare funding following calls for a review from agencies and Indigenous leadership.
“The model is reaching a critical juncture,” said Minister of Families Nahanni Fontaine.
Fontaine says the announcement comes as a response to calls from CFS agencies, advocates and Indigenous leadership.
The single-envelope funding model for CFS was introduced in 2019 and since then has not undergone a review.
Under the single-envelope model, the government provides policy direction and annual budgets for Manitoba’s four child welfare authorities, which are then responsible for managing the funds.
“This review is about building a stronger system that helps keep children connected to who they are and where they come from, while also ensuring families, communities, and nations have the support they need to care for their children,” said Fontaine.
Right now, the province is looking for a third-party organization to run the review. No cost estimates are available yet, and the expectation is the review will start by the end of 2026 and run for a year, and results will be available to the public.
“It’s quite timely that we do a review. We’ve been calling for years for this,” said Southern Chiefs’ Organization Grand Chief Jerry Daniels.
Grand Chief Daniels called for the review of the CFS funding in February of this year. He says First Nations are experiencing fiscal challenges with CFS, and while the review is welcomed, there is a need for short-term, immediate solutions.
“Children who have high educational outcomes, children that are not being incarcerated once they leave care. Those are the things that need to be reversed, and until we see those changes, I don’t think that anyone is successful on this file,” said Grand Chief Daniels.
