For Immediate Release

FIRST NATIONS FINANCE AUTHORITY ISSUES 9th DEBENTURE

Latest $354 million-dollar FNFA debenture supports First Nations borrowing members’
loans that tie to the United Nations ESG Sustainable Development goals

Westbank, British Columbia (March 3, 2022) Loans provided by the non-profit First Nations
Finance Authority (FNFA) have now exceeded the $1.65 billion mark to help borrowing First
Nations build strong and healthy communities. These community priorities naturally attach to
one or more of the United Nations’ Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) sustainable
development goals.

“We are working with First Nations so that together we can move from managing poverty to
managing wealth,” said Ernie Daniels, President and CEO of the FNFA. “These loans will
improve living conditions and create wealth in First Nations communities across Canada, while
also paralleling the UN’s ESG sustainable development goals.”

This 9th FNFA debenture supports projects that created approximately 3,400 jobs in 19 First
Nations communities, and throughout Canada. The FNFA loans will finance projects such as a
solar energy farm in Ontario, a hydro-electric project in Quebec, an elder’s care facility,
housing, and other infrastructure designed to improve living standards. All loan service costs
are repaid with First Nations own-source revenues, not government support.

Financing through the FNFA supports the efforts of First Nations to build critical infrastructure
such as water treatment plants, schools, housing, and community development projects.
However, more must be done and the FNFA supports a strategy called “monetization” to meet
the Trudeau Government’s goal of closing the $30 billion infrastructure gap between First
Nations and the rest of Canada by 2030.

“We are urging the Government of Canada to consider a new approach to funding
infrastructure that is an alternative to the government’s “pay as you” go model,” said FNFA
Chair Chief Warren Tabobondung of Wasauksing First Nation. “Monetization has the potential
to be a crucial tool to bridge the growing infrastructure gap that has left so many Indigenous
people in living in poverty.”

About the First Nations Finance Authority (FNFA)
The FNFA is a not-for-profit First Nation institution that plays a crucial role in the social and
economic development of First Nations across Canada by providing qualifying First Nations
with access to the capital markets at competitive rates. Established by the federal First Nations
Fiscal Management Act in 2005, FNFA is by First Nations, for First Nations. The FNFA will
continue to expand and diversify, looking to strengthen its credit rating and increase the
financial benefits to its growing membership.

For more information Contact:
Leanne Hunter, FNFA Senior Advisor
Telephone: 613.853.2612
Email: lhunter@fnfa.ca