Tracking the SDGs in Canadian Cities: SDG 1

The document tracks SDG 1 progress in Canadian cities, finding that while child poverty is declining and social assistance coverage is increasing, overall poverty rates have risen in most cities, deviating from 2030 targets. It highlights significant regional disparities in poverty rates and municipal budget allocations for social services.

• Overall poverty rates, measured by the after-tax Low Income Measure, have been volatile and slowly increasing for most Canadian cities over the last 20 years, moving away from the 2030 target. The national average rose from 12.1 per cent in 1995 to 14.2 per cent in 2015, with Toronto and Winnipeg seeing growth rates of 70.8 per cent and 37.8 per cent respectively. Edmonton recorded the lowest proportion at 6.1 per cent, while Montreal had the highest rates among the 13 cities in 2015, increasing from 13.3 to 18.9 per cent between 2014 and 2015.
• Child poverty rates in Canadian cities have generally declined since 2000, though they remain higher than general poverty rates. The national average for child poverty was 17.4 per cent in 2015. Quebec City achieved the lowest rates, dropping from 13.1 per cent in 2000 to 7.7 per cent in 2015, whereas Winnipeg has maintained the highest child poverty rates since 2010.
• The proportion of the population receiving social assistance increased in all tracked cities between 2001 and 2015, except for Saskatoon. The Canadian average rose from 51.9 per cent in 2001 to 59.7 per cent in 2015, with Quebec City having the highest proportion (67 per cent) and Calgary the lowest (44.9 per cent).
• Municipal budget allocations for social services vary widely based on priorities and jurisdictional responsibilities. In 2013, Toronto (30.8 per cent) and Ottawa (26.5 per cent) dedicated significant portions of their budgets to social spending, while Calgary (5.8 per cent) and Edmonton (2.5 per cent) allocated much less. Quebec City and Saskatoon both allocated less than 1 per cent of their total budgets to social services in 2013.
• The document notes a data gap regarding the ability to assess progress on target 1.5, which concerns the resilience of vulnerable populations to climate-related extreme events and other environmental shocks.

APA

Temmer, J. (2017). Tracking the SDGs in Canadian Cities: SDG 1. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tracking-sdgs-canadian-cities-sdg-1.pdf

Chicago

Temmer, Jennifer. Tracking the SDGs in Canadian Cities: SDG 1. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2017. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tracking-sdgs-canadian-cities-sdg-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Temmer |first1=Jennifer |title=Tracking the SDGs in Canadian Cities: SDG 1 |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=October 2017 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tracking-sdgs-canadian-cities-sdg-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{temmer2017tracking, author = {Temmer, Jennifer}, title = {{Tracking the SDGs in Canadian Cities: SDG 1}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2017}, month = oct, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tracking-sdgs-canadian-cities-sdg-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }