Manitoba is to join other provinces in federally run daycare programs.
The Government of Canada is to provide regulated child care throughout the entire country. Manitoba will join British Columbia, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island as a province with federalized child care. (It should be noted that Yukon Territory also has federalized child care.) On average, a $10-per-day care space by 2025-26 is to be established in every listed province (and territory). Over 23,000 new full-time regulated care spaces are to come. Manitoba is lucky to have its child care plan established in 2023.
The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Canada’s Minister of Families, Children and Social Development along with the Honourable Rochelle Squires, Manitoba’s Minister of Families announced Manitoba’s support for the federalized child care service, reducing the price of daycare for families. By the end of 2022, Manitoban families will have a reduction in fees for children 6 and under of up to 50%. This 50% will include not only public daycare providers but also not-for-profit and family-based operations.
“Every child deserves the best possible start in life. Our vision for early learning and child care is big and ambitious, but if we tell our own kids to dream big, we need to lead by example,” Said the Honourable Ahmed Hussen. “Today’s historic agreement with Manitoba is another important step on the path to ensuring all families have access to high-quality, affordable, and inclusive child care.”
The over $1.2 billion to be invested in Manitoban daycare programs will help the families with young children who are transitioning back into the in-person world. With society reaching a post-COVID-19 state, the opportunity to improve the country, rather than return to the previous stay quo, presents itself. The creation of 1,700 extended-hour child care spaces for families as well as increased support for children with disabilities proves that such improvement is possible.
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