--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/an-infrastructure-index-for-remote-indigenous-communities/" title: "An Infrastructure Index for Remote Indigenous Communities" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T10:39:42+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T10:39:42+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "broadband" - "composite index" - "First Nations" - "Indigenous communities" - "infrastructure" - "Inuit" - "Métis" - "northern Canada" - "remote communities" country_focus: - "Canada" province_region: - "National" research_theme: - "Fiscal Policy" - "Indigenous Economic Development" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # An Infrastructure Index for Remote Indigenous Communities Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/an-infrastructure-index-for-remote-indigenous-communities/ # An Infrastructure Index for Remote Indigenous Communities [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2019-04-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Johnston, Nicole, and Andrew Sharpe. 2019. “An Infrastructure Index for Remote Indigenous Communities.” CSLS Research Report 2019-04. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/an-infrastructure-index-for-remote-indigenous-communities/ ## Authors: - Nicole Johnston Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) - Andrew Sharpe Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) ## Report 2019-04 August 2019 39 pages ## Related research [Closing the First Nations Education Gap in Canada: Assessing Progress and Estimating the Economic Benefits — An Update Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) February 2023 | Report 2023-01 | 101 pages](https://csls.ca/research/closing-the-first-nations-education-gap-in-canada-assessing-progress-and-estimating-the-economic-benefits-an-update-2023-01/) [Indicators of Labour Market Conditions in Canada Andrew Sharpe, Anne-Marie Shaker November 2007 | Report 2007-03 | 67 pages](https://csls.ca/research/indicators-of-labour-market-conditions-in-canada/) [Assessing Canada’s Ability to Compete for Foreign Direct Investment Andrew Sharpe, Meghna Banerjee June 2008 | Report 2008-04 | 62 pages](https://csls.ca/research/assessing-canadas-ability-to-compete-for-foreign-direct-investment/) [Investment in British Columbia: Current Realities and the Way Forward Andrew Sharpe, Jean-François Arsenault, Peter Harrison December 2008 | Report 2008-10 | 66 pages](https://csls.ca/research/investment-in-british-columbia-current-realities-and-the-way-forward/) [A Review of the Potential Impacts of the Métis Human Resources Development Agreements in Canada Jean-François Arsenault, Andrew Sharpe May 2009 | Report 2009-01 | 80 pages](https://csls.ca/research/a-review-of-the-potential-impacts-of-the-metis-human-resources-development-agreements-in-canada/) [Economic Activity of the On-Reserve Aboriginal Identity Population in Canada: Gross Domestic Product Estimates for Indian Reserves, 2000 and 2005 Evguenia Tsiroulnitchenko, Elspeth Hazell August 2011 | Report 2011-08 | 83 pages](https://csls.ca/research/economic-activity-of-the-on-reserve-aboriginal-identity-population-in-canada-gross-domestic-product-estimates-for-indian-reserves-2000-and-2005/) [Aboriginal Labour Market Performance in Canada: 2007-2011 Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) June 2012 | Report 2012-04 | 119 pages](https://csls.ca/research/aboriginal-labour-market-performance-in-canada-2007-2011/) [Labour Market Prospects for the Métis in the Canadian Mining Industry Evan Capeluck, Andrew Sharpe May 2013 | Report 2013-02 | 142 pages](https://csls.ca/research/labour-market-prospects-for-the-metis-in-the-canadian-mining-industry/) [The Contribution of Broadband to the Economic Development of First Nations in Canada Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) July 2013 | Report 2013-04 | 65 pages](https://csls.ca/research/the-contribution-of-broadband-to-the-economic-development-of-first-nations-in-canada/) [Benchmarking Metis Economic and Social Development Jasmin Thomas July 2015 | Report 2015-07 | 115 pages](https://csls.ca/research/benchmarking-metis-economic-and-social-development/) ## Abstract ## Résumé EN FR Copy link Email LinkedIn This report sheds light on the deficiencies in infrastructure faced by Canada’s remote Indigenous communities by quantifying the level of infrastructure in 236 remote communities in Canada’s North. This quantification is done through a composite index based on 13 infrastructure indicators, including availability of broadband, roads, airports, the electrical grid, health care, education, water, and housing, with values ranging from 0 to 1. This report compares the level of infrastructure found in remote Indigenous communities both with remote nonIndigenous northern communities and southern cities. Indigenous communities are broken down by the three heritage groups: First Nations, Inuit and Métis. While the southern cities identified in the 2016 Census as Census Metropolitan Areas have an average index score of 0.97, remote Indigenous communities saw a score of 0.45 and remote non-Indigenous communities a score of 0.82. Inuit communities face the lowest level of infrastructure (an index score of 0.31), and remote Indigenous communities in Nunavut fared the lowest of the jurisdictions with a score of 0.30. Ce rapport met en lumière les lacunes en matière d’infrastructure auxquelles font face les communautés autochtones éloignées du Canada, en quantifiant le niveau d’infrastructure dans 236 communautés éloignées du Nord canadien. Cette quantification est réalisée au moyen d’un indice composite fondé sur 13 indicateurs d’infrastructure, notamment la disponibilité du haut débit, des routes, des aéroports, du réseau électrique, des soins de santé, de l’éducation, de l’eau et du logement, avec des valeurs allant de 0 à 1. Ce rapport compare le niveau d’infrastructure des communautés autochtones éloignées à celui des communautés nordiques éloignées non autochtones et des villes du Sud. Les communautés autochtones sont ventilées selon les trois groupes d’origine : Premières Nations, Inuits et Métis. Alors que les villes du Sud désignées comme régions métropolitaines de recensement dans le Recensement de 2016 affichent un score moyen de 0,97 à l’indice, les communautés autochtones éloignées affichent un score de 0,45 et les communautés non autochtones éloignées, un score de 0,82. Les communautés inuites font face au niveau d’infrastructure le plus faible (score de 0,31), et les communautés autochtones éloignées du Nunavut affichent le score le plus faible parmi les administrations, soit 0,30. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2019-04-1.pdf)