FCC Indigenous finance team tackles borrowing barriers – Manitoba Co-operator
Jan 05, 2025
Farm lender provides ‘à la carte’ loan options to First Nations farmers
First Nations farmers have often been frozen out of agricultural lending. An all-Indigenous team at Farm Credit Canada is working to ensure they get the capital they need.
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“We’re taking Indigenous voices, we’re taking what you’re telling us, and we’re trying to implement that change here … to meet the needs of those that are on reserve,” said Monica James, senior director of Indigenous financing at FCC.
Why it matters: Indigenous communities, farmers and entrepreneurs have argued for more room for Indigenous opportunity in agriculture and food production, but opportunity often requires capital to get off the ground.
The team launched in 2022, James said. Since April of that year, 845 customers self-reported as Indigenous, according to FCC’s 2023-24 annual report.
