Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security - Department of Women and Gender Equality Canada progress report - 2021-2022

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• Women and Gender Equality Canada and women, peace and security
• Women and Gender Equality Canada’s role and approach to Gender-based Analysis Plus
• Collaboration with action plan partners on women, peace and security

Women and Gender Equality Canada and women, peace and security

The Department of Women and Gender Equality (WAGE) officially became a department of the Government of Canada on December 13, 2019. This change from agency to department modernized and formalized, in law, the roles of the Minister and the Department - to support the advancement of gender equality as a central priority for the Government of Canada through policy, programming, funding, and research, and to coordinate such efforts across the federal government.

WAGE acts as a Centre for Excellence on Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus), both inside and outside of government, and facilitates the transfer of knowledge, capacity building, resources and engagement related to GBA Plus among various stakeholders. One of WAGE’s key roles is to help build the capacity of federal departments and agencies in applying rigorous GBA Plus. This includes the development and provision of tools and training for use by all federal government employees, as well as more targeted training for specific sectors, including the security and defence sector.

As such, WAGE provides technical advice, guidance, and assistance on key Government of Canada initiatives related to gender equality and GBA Plus mainstreaming, to ensure that all plans, programs and/or initiatives and peace support operations are responsive to GBA Plus considerations, including equity, diversity and inclusion at large.

WAGE also provides expertise in the area of gender-based violence (GBV). Launched in 2018, the GBV Knowledge Centre online platform has become an invaluable resource on GBV for CNAP partner departments, external partners, educators and civil society organizations. As the focal point of the Canada’s Gender-Based Violence Strategy, the Knowledge Centre facilitates the alignment of existing federal resources, coordinates new federal initiatives, supports the sharing of research and data, ensures alignment with provincial and territorial strategies, and accounts publicly for results.

Women and Gender Equality Canada’s role and approach to Gender-based Analysis Plus

Women and Gender Equality (WAGE) is the lead for the implementation of the Government’s commitment to apply GBA Plus. Progress resulting from the government’s GBA Plus Action Plan for 2016-2020 included new requirements for GBA Plus in Cabinet proposals; the establishment and strengthening of networks; the launch of GBA Plus implementation surveys to gauge progress in implementation; and enhanced GBA Plus training and tools. A review of progress and the impact of activities is underway, and consideration will be given to the development of additional training and tools to ensure GBA Plus is applied across government, at all levels. The Government also directed that GBA Plus be integrated into Departmental Results Frameworks, Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, to strengthen its ability to monitor the impact of GBA Plus on government programs, policies and initiatives. The Government has also directed that GBA Plus be integrated into the design and conduct of future government consultations, and guidance to this effect is being created in partnership with the Privy Council Office. In addition, Budget 2019 moved GBA Plus even further, reflecting concerted efforts to incorporate GBA Plus in the policy development process and to make the Government’s analysis available to Canadians.

Specifically, the GBA Plus Action Plan (2016-2020) launched by WAGE, the Privy Council Office and the Treasury Board Secretariat, laid out detailed commitments to increase the integration of GBA Plus across government, including:

• enhancing GBA Plus training and capacity in key sectors across government;
• convening ‘clusters’ of like-minded departments to promote information-sharing and collaboration among members in order to support sustainable GBA Plus implementation across the federal government;
• increasing accountability, monitoring, and reporting through the collection and analysis of detailed GBA Plus reports from all departments and by developing a more robust monitoring framework; and,
• increasing the availability of gender-disaggregated data and gender-based research to inform rigours GBA Plus.

Continued progress has been made against each commitment contributing to effective networks and robust infrastructure post 2020. The process has been one of continuous improvement building on lessons learned, which include:

• Need for greater understanding of intersectional GBA Plus that reflects multiple social identity factors
• Capacity resources and tools are not sufficient in certain contexts
• Lack of clarity of WAGE’s role in some mandatory processes (example, MCs, TB submissions)
• Limited monitoring of the impacts of GBA Plus
• Without a senior-level decision-making body, coordination and alignment across departments remains overly siloed

To ensure the Government of Canada has the rigorous tools required to deliver on commitments and advance equality, diversity and inclusion priorities, efforts will continue to build on progress and sustain momentum. Moving forward, the following have been identified as priority actions:

• Strengthen Quality and Rigour: A consistent, rigorous and intersectional GBA plus methodology to align different “lenses” all government business
• Increase Capacity: A competent network of GBA Plus experts working across the federal public service and functional areas

Enhance Governance and Accountability: Effective and inclusive governance, accountability and Transparency mechanisms.

Collaboration with action plan partners on women, peace and security

WAGE works closely with the lead Women, Peace and Security Action Plan partner departments Global Affairs Canada (GAC), the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the Department of National Defence (DND) and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) to increase their capacity to apply an intersectional gender and diversity lens to their policies, plans and operations. WAGE also currently has an agreement with the Centre for Intercultural Learning (CIL) at Global Affairs Canada to deliver GBA Plus training to federal government organizations upon request, and internationally. WAGE is also leading the implementation of Canada’s Strategy to Address and Prevent Gender-Based Violence (Canada’s GBV Strategy), in which DND/CAF and the RCMP are partners. WAGE is also the supporting Action Plan lead partners on internal cultural change initiatives geared to increasing the number of women able to deploy in support of peace operations. WAGE also collaborates with all supporting and implementing CNAP partners in the development and participation in events, discussions and learning sessions of mutual concern to ensure continued progress in the application of GBA Plus.

Activity 1

Women and Gender Equality Canada works with the RCMP and DND/CAF to help them develop their internal capacity to apply GBA Plus to their policies, plans and programs in support of their culture change initiatives. This has included the collaborative development of advanced GBA Plus training for policy personnel.

Completed activities

WAGE presented an overview of GBA Plus to the Bias Sensitivity, Diversity, and Identity Committee (BSDI) on June 2, 2022. This included an overview of GBA Plus, the strengthening tools, steps for conducting and applying GBA Plus, and most importantly additional resources, including a question-and-answer period. The audience, consisting of a total of 77 working level and senior management participants were provided the opportunity to tailor their inquiries for the purposes of applying GBA Plus in the context of national security.

Results and progress

• WAGE experienced an increase in the number of requests received for consultations on GBA Plus analysis in the security context, namely from lead organizations for CNAP's implementation including, Global Affairs Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and the Department of National Defense/Canadian Armed Forces. The increase in demand conveys a strong understanding of the necessity of GBA Plus across all of government, especially in early phases of policy, service, program, strategy development, application, and evaluation.
• One of WAGE's key contribution to the CNAP continues to be the emphasis on integrating a gender and intersectional perspective into Canada's peace and security work. WAGE also continues to strengthen federal capacity to integrate more targeted gender equality objectives into Canada's peace and security activities around the world.

Mandatory

A significant challenge encountered by WAGE includes internal changes in the GBA Plus team in addition to competing priorities, which spreads our limited resources. As a result, WAGE was not able to accommodate all requests for further trainings, presentations, or workshops.

Activity 2

Women and Gender Equality Canada is also working with various partners (including the RCMP and DND/CAF) on initiatives to address gender-based violence, including participating in the development of a new federal regime to ensure federal workplaces are free from harassment and sexual violence.

Completed activities

The Federal GBV Strategy Annual Progress Report for 2021-2022 has been published on WAGE's website.

Results and progress

• Over the course of 2021-2022, Federal GBV Strategy partners (including DND/CAF and the RCMP) have made progress in a variety of important areas, including on new and ongoing activities to:
  • Deliver GBV supports to diverse populations including survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence, 2SLGBTQI+ individuals, immigrants and refugees, Indigenous youth, women, and current and former members of the Canadian Armed Forces.
  • Fund research projects that inform and support the development and implementation of promising practices, and address gaps in supports for victims and survivors, and their families.
  • Develop, implement and test training, toolkits, and other resources for service providers, law enforcement, teachers, doctors, social workers, coaches and others so that they can recognize and respond safely and effectively to the GBV experienced by the people they serve.
• For a more fulsome view of the Government of Canada's actions to prevent and address GBV, please consult the 2021-2022 Annual Progress Report of the Federal GBV Strategy.

Activity 3

Women and Gender Equality Canada is also supporting the RCMP in reviewing current gender- and culturally-sensitive training policies for federal front-line law enforcement officers to ensure that they are strong and effective and in building GBA Plus capacity, in keeping with additional commitments outlined in the mandate letter of the Minister for Women and Gender Equality.

Completed activities

• The GBA Plus Capacity Building Working Group (CBWG) is a director-level interdepartmental forum occurring on a quarterly basis that offers federal organizations the capacity to advance the implementation of GBA Plus across the federal government. This group acts as a decision-making body for the Learning Advisory Committee (LAC) on GBA Plus and thus provides oversight of the LAC on GBA Plus. The GBA Plus CBWG supports and addresses the internal capacity building at the departmental and agency levels and provides a venue for the proliferation of GBA Plus knowledge both within and outside of the Government of Canada, and for the advancement of GBA Plus learning products.
• Furthermore, the Standing Offer for GBA Plus Consultancy Services (RFSO) is underway to address additional capacity needs in the Government of Canada for GBA Plus expertise across a range of activities from evaluation to program development. After two years of development, the GBA Plus Division at WAGE launched the standing offer in mid-end August 2022 in collaboration with Public Service and Procurement Canada (PSPC). The standing offer will establish an inventory of pre-qualified GBA Plus consultants available to federal departments. The Statement of Work outlines five areas in which consultants will be able to provide their expertise to numerous departments including the RCMP in reviewing current gender and culturally sensitive training policies for federal front line law enforcement officers for the purposes outlined above. The workstreams are as follows:
  1. Research and analysis
  2. Policy development and implementation
  3. Program and project management
  4. Training and tools development and facilitation
  5. Evaluation and monitoring

Results and progress

Work is in progress to strengthen and build GBA Plus capacity, which is an essential component of WAGE's mandate to enhance the framing and parameters of GBA Plus. To this end, WAGE is undertaking engagement and consultations with federal departments and external stakeholders in Fall 2022 to gather diverse perspectives on this analytical tool and suggestions for improvement. These consultations will help enhance the use of this intersectional analysis tool to better capture the lived experienced of all people across Canada.

One challenge for WAGE and the GBA Plus unit more specifically relates to capacity. The GBA Plus unit lacks dedicated resources to support initiatives in this area. As a result, targeted training, workshops or theme-specific resources have not been developed.

Activity 4

Women and Gender Equality Canada also works closely with Global Affairs Canada in preparing for and in negotiating the agreed conclusions of the annual UN Commission on the Status of Women, which includes advancing the Government of Canada's position on WPS.

Completed activities

WAGE led the Canadian delegation at the 66th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW65) held from March 14-25, 2022. Due to the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the session followed a hybrid format.

Results and progress

• CSW66 Agreed Conclusions: Finalized on March 29, 2022, the Agreed Conclusions acknowledge that achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls is tied up with women's full, equal, effective and meaningful participation and decision-making in the context of climate change, environmental degradation and disaster risk reduction. The Conclusions also recognized the role of women and girls as agents of change for sustainable development. The Commission also evaluated progress in the implementation of the agreed conclusions from its 61st session (2017) theme "Women's economic empowerment in the changing world of work".
• Canada's 66th Session of the UNCSW Country Statement: Minister Ien delivered Canada's statement virtually on March 16, 2022. She began her statement by acknowledging that women and girls are disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental disasters, highlighting that the pandemic and warfare (including the invasion of Ukraine) can aggravate these impacts. She underscored that resource scarcity and climate emergencies intersect with gender-based violence that not only endangers women and girls but also the full realization of human rights and health. To close, she relayed Canada's commitment to taking an inclusive, gender-responsive approach to climate and biodiversity policy at both the domestic and international levels, drawing attention to Canada's latest national climate plan, a Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy, and Canada's leadership role in advancing gender equality in the negotiations of the new global biodiversity framework, under the Convention on Biological Diversity.