Partnership to provide PPE for First Nations front line workers
- EFN Staff | June 09, 2020
A partnership to secure and provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Saskatchewan First Nations was recently announced. The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN), Pasqua First Nation, and Pro Metal Industries Ltd have partnered to procure and provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Saskatchewan First Nations.
The PPE will include a total of 444,000 gloves, 592,000 surgical face masks, 50,000 isolation gowns and 2,200 face shields were provided from Pro Metal Industries Ltd. to the FSIN for distribution and is intended for use by essential and front-line workers in Saskatchewan’s First Nation communities.
“Pasqua First Nation welcomes the opportunity to work with the Federal Government’s First Nation Indian Health Benefits (FNIHB), FSIN and ProMetal Industries in acquiring the much-needed PPE for the FSIN’s 74 First Nations front line workers,” said Pasqua First Nation Chief Matthew Todd Peigan in a release. “This PPE will assist in keeping those FN front line workers safe while keeping their own First Nation members safe during the COVID-19 Pandemic.”
According to the statement, this is the second round of PPE deliveries that the FSIN has made to Saskatchewan First Nations where the first round of deliveries included 155,000 barrier masks, 183,000 disposable gloves and hundreds of bottles of hand sanitizer. PPE was also delivered to the First Nations’ Child and Family Service agencies.
“We are ensuring that every First Nation is properly prepared for the potential second or third waves of COVID-19. As Saskatchewan moves through their proposed reopen plan phases, we remind everyone that we must not let our guard down on our efforts of containing and preventing the spread of this invisible enemy,” stated FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron. “We urge all First Nations to continue to be vigilant with their emergency preparedness measures, border security and/or curfews. We are implementing the famine and pestilence clause under Treaty.”
Pro Metal Industries Ltd. is wholly owned by Pasqua First Nation’s PFN Group of Companies.