Indigenous Services Canada Statement of Support for Canada's National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security – 2023 to 2029

This statement of support constitutes Indigenous Services Canada’s contribution to Canada’s third National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (2023 to 2029).

Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) is committed to supporting Global Affairs Canada’s implementation of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda and fully endorses the principles and themes of Foundations for Peace: Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (2023 to 2029). These principles and themes include:

• the importance of addressing sexual and gender-based violence;
• promoting women, girls and gender-diverse people’s rights; and
• supporting women’s participation in well-being and peace-related processes.

ISC’s support for the WPS agenda is grounded in ISC’s departmental mandate, Canada’s whole-of-government approach to reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples and statutory obligations.

Canada recognizes that the legacy of federal policies, programs, regulations and laws―such as the Indian Act and residential schools―created and perpetuates systemic inequities for Indigenous Peoples, including marginalization, higher rates of illness, disability, suicide, food insecurity, poverty and violence. Indigenous women, girls and gender-diverse people, in particular, are significantly more likely to experience gender-based violence than their non-Indigenous counterparts. We recognize that for too long, this situation has not been named as a systemic problem and instead has been treated as the responsibility of Indigenous women, girls, Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex and asexual plus (2SLGBTQQIA+) people―to deal with trauma, heal and seek justice.

Indigenous women, girls and gender-diverse people’s empowerment and participation in leadership roles are essential in advancing peace-related processes, as well as their rights and well-being. Many Indigenous women and gender-diverse people are leading the way in healing the wounds of colonization and addressing socio-economic gaps, discrimination and political marginalization. Their lived experiences, strength, resilience and the unique barriers they face due to the intersections of Indigenous and gender identities, have fostered a deeper understanding of the challenges and injustices faced by Indigenous communities, women, girls and gender-diverse people.

ISC, in collaboration with Indigenous partners, has multiple initiatives that help address the gender-based discrimination, violence and marginalization of Indigenous women, girls and gender-diverse people. Examples include:

• implementing the Pathways to Safe Indigenous Communities Initiative, which supports First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities and partners, both on- and off-reserve, in designing and delivering projects to improve community safety and well-being, including for women, children and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people
• delivering various ISC-led programs that support the implementation of the Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People, including shelters, family violence prevention and mental health support
• working with international partners to prevent violence against Indigenous women, girls and gender-diverse people
• eliminating known sex-based inequities in registration and band membership under the Indian Act
• collaborating with Indigenous partners on Indigenous women, gender-diverse and Two-Spirit people’s well-being, such as through the Advisory Committee on Indigenous Women’s Well-being, which provides gender and distinctions-based advice and guidance on issues across the social determinants of health

These initiatives complement the themes of three focus areas identified in Canada’s third National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security:

• improving security, justice and accountability
• reducing sexual and gender-based violence
• inclusion

Many of ISC’s initiatives are informed by existing federal action plans and/or domestic calls to action, including the Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls to action. The initiatives also align with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (notably, Article 22) and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (notably, Goal 5).

Reporting and progress related to the above-mentioned initiatives can be found here:

• ISC departmental results reports: Starting from 2018 to 2019, ISC’s departmental results reports include a supplemental information table on gender-based analysis plus.
• Federal pathway annual progress reports
• Implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act annual reports
• Canada and the Sustainable Development Goals