2000-2019 Vital Signs of Greater Montréal - A significant economic growth, though major social deficit

MONTRÉAL, June 9, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - The Foundation of Greater Montreal (FGM) today released its 2020 Vital Signs of Greater Montréal report at a virtual talk organized in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal. The report shows that while the city has experienced impressive economic growth over the past 20 years, social needs remain pressing and are worsened by the current crisis. At a time when COVID-19 is putting our social system under pressure, this overview demonstrates that, in Canada, Montréal continues to have one of the highest rates of:

• child poverty ;
• food insecurity;
• school drop-out;
• violence towards women.

Produced by the Institut du Québec, this report provides a 20-year portrait (2000-2019) of the evolution of the Greater Montreal area, based on the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also provides an in-depth perspective on the strengths and weaknesses of the Greater Montreal community, as well as the challenges remaining in the coming years.

Solid economic growth, yet limited resilience      
Montréal has experienced strong economic growth over the past 20 years and is now a driving force in Québec. The unemployment rate has also drastically declined over the period, reaching in 2019 its lowest level in several decades. At the same time, major investments have been made for environmental protection, improvement of water quality and development of public transit. Yet, this economic growth was not enough to address major social issues over the past 20 years. Montreal's vulnerable populations still experience precariousness and food insecurity. The report shows, among other things, the following:

• In the last 20 years, the number of food baskets distributed by the Food Banks has doubled and the food insecurity rate has reached 13.6% of the population of the Island of Montreal.
• Montreal is home to the four ridings with the highest rate of children from low-income families in Quebec: Ville-Marie--Le Sud-Ouest--Île-des-Sœurs (38.1%), Bourassa (32.9%), Saint-Léonard--Saint-Michel (31.9%) and Papineau (29.1%).
• In the administrative region of Montreal, the school drop-out rate was 15.9% in 2016-2017, compared with 13.1% in Quebec as a whole.
• In 2018, there were 368 per 100,000 minor girls (under 18 years of age) victims of domestic violence in Montreal compared to less than 200 in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver.
• Across Canada, the rates of police-reported sexual assaults increased after the #Me Too movement in Fall 2017. However, among Canada's four major cities, Montreal experienced the largest increase in this regard, at 67%.

"Looking at the evolution of our community through the lens of the Sustainable Development Goals, we realize that our community has not been able to achieve the social shift needed to build the resilience we lack today. While some progress has been made, much remains to be done to support vulnerable populations that have been most severely impacted by the effects of COVID-19," says Yvan Gauthier, president and chief executive officer, Foundation of Greater Montréal.

Building together a more resilient society  
"We must take the opportunity of the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis to create a more resilient society focused on achieving sustainable development goals. Our study pinpoints the most important challenges for our community right now. We must undertake major efforts to provide better support to vulnerable people, effectively prevent people from dropping out of school and develop community infrastructure. Our recovery efforts must be directed towards long-term development and must be inclusive of all stakeholders," underlines Yvan Gauthier.

For many years, the Foundation of Greater Montreal has been actively working to strengthen the resilience of Greater Montreal and its community. The Foundation is one of the nine foundations providing financial support to the Collective Impact Project (CIP) initiated by Centraide in 2016 and aimed at reducing poverty in Montréal neighbourhoods. It has also implemented the Zero Hunger project in Montréal, which seeks at updating knowledge and mobilizing Montréal's food security ecosystem to foster the development of concerted solutions to this key issue.

As a way to help the most vulnerable during the crisis, the FGM launched the COVID-19 Collective Fund and participates in the management of the Emergency Fund for Community Support in Greater Montreal. Nearly $8 million in funding will be allocated by the Foundation to provide financial support to community organizations and institutions in all sectors during the current pandemic.

About the 2020 Vital Signs of Greater Montréal report

The Foundation of Greater Montreal thanks all its partners and members of the Vital Signs strategic committee, as well as the Institut du Québec, for their contribution to this report. Published by the Foundation since 2006, this series of reports is intended to open discussion and allow people interested in improving our community to learn about real needs and set priorities to better guide investments.

« The Lucie and André Chagnon Foundation is very proud to have contributed to the production of 2020 Vital Signs of Greater Montreal report. This report is an important document to fuel discussion on shared issues and priorities, not only with the FGM and other charities, but with the entire community. » Jean-Marc Chouinard, president of the Lucie and André Chagnon Foundation.

To read the 2020 Vital Signs of Greater Montréal report: https://bit.ly/30nEmNc

To read a summary of key findings: https://bit.ly/37cylE7

About the Foundation of Greater Montréal

The Foundation of Greater Montréal (FGM) helps individuals, families and organizations to get involved and support their community by creating funds for selected causes in all sectors. In addition to publishing the Vital Signs of Greater Montréal report, FGM manages the assets of about 650 funds, guides donors and supports community organizations. A member of the Community Foundations of Canada, a network of 191 community foundations, FGM encourages philanthropy as a major driver for well-being in Greater Montréal.

SOURCE Foundation of Greater Montreal

Simon Delorme, Project Manager - Communications, [phone], ext. 107 / [email protected]

Related Links

www.fgmtl.org