Canada's Role in Promoting Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in International Development

Canada's Role in Promoting Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in International Development

 MEMO TO: Ministry of International Development and Women and Gender Equality 

Purpose: 

This policy brief focuses on the role of Canada in international development by promoting gender equality and empowering women. Canada’s institutions such as International Development Research Centre, Canada’s G7 and Canada’s National Committee have the goal of improving gender equality and empowering women worldwide. Recently, there has been an increase in gender inequality worldwide. Thus, Canada has pledged to prioritize initiatives that endorse women rights, address gender disparities and empower women. This policy brief, therefore, seeks to spur action, build alliances and achieve gender equality since women’s empowerment across the world. 

Summary: 

The issue of women’s empowerment and gender equality is a significant debate that the global community is involved in. As one of the countries that are committed to progressing gender equality and women’s empowerment, Canada commits to policy directions to reduce the gender gap while promoting women’s rights, among other things. The policy directions concentrate on policy coherence, targeted investments, and partnerships. Through this policy, Canada aims to dismantle systemic barriers and create enabling environments where women and girls can fully participate, prosper, and lead. Strategies include mainstreaming gender across all development programs, supporting women's organizations, providing targeted funding, conducting gender analysis, and advocating for gender-responsive governance. In advocating for gender equality globally, Canada pursues to inspire action and build a future where every individual, regardless of gender, can thrive. 

Background: 

Global community awareness of the importance of gender equality as a foundation for inclusive growth is expanding. Canada performs well on a number of gender equality metrics. One of Canada's initial actions was to sign and ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) (Blanchfield, 2011). International guidelines for eradicating gender discrimination were established by the treaty.

In 1993, Canada participated in the ground-breaking creation of the Vienna Declaration and Program of Action. The statement "women's rights are human rights" was made in this declaration. It further urged that the human rights and equitable status of women and girls be included in UN system-wide efforts.

Resolutions aimed at putting a stop to violence against women and girls have the support of the Canadian government. This will involve female genital mutilation, so-called "honour" crimes, and other customs and traditions that have an adverse effect on the health of women and girls. Canada also played a key role in ensuring that offenses based on gender and sexual orientation were covered by the International Criminal Court's draft statute. 

Analysis: 

Gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls, both locally and worldwide, are essential to achieving transformative social and economic outcomes, according to the Canadian government's strategy to implementing the 2030 Agenda. Gender equality was at the forefront of the government's agenda, with initiatives to raise women's economic security and prosperity, strengthen their representation at all levels of decision-making, combat gender-based violence, and develop a feminist foreign policy given top priority. Canada's Feminist International Assistance Policy was introduced in June 2017 with the goal of eradicating poverty and constructing a society that is more wealthy, inclusive, and peaceful (Gender equality in Canada., n.d.-a). Canada is adamant that the best approach to accomplish this target and advance the other SDGs is empowerment girls and women and promote gender equality globally. 

Canada’s role in fighting gender inequality and empowerment of women is evident in targeted initiatives that directly address gender disparity. For instance, majority of research financed by IDRC takes gender into account when formulating its arguments, and it mostly addresses gender equality by permitting women to meaningfully engage in marginalized areas or by producing fresh data on gender inequality. Apart from these contributions, the IDRC approximates that 17% of its research funding is allocated to work that promotes gender transformation. During writing of the report “Building a more climate-resilient future through CLARE” by IDRC, the Center had invested 149 million CAD in 143 ongoing programs that aim to transform gender (Gender, 2024). 

Canada is the world's largest investor in women's rights organizations, having committed $330 million to support gender equality initiatives and organizations both domestically and internationally. These initiatives like Equality Fund are focused on women's economic empowerment, access to healthcare, ending violence against women, and endorsing women's leadership and political participation. According to the Canadian government, the Equality Fund is the first worldwide platform of its kind since it unites governments, charities, and the corporate sector to provide flexible and sustainable funding for women's groups and movements. A total of $300 million has been set aside expressly for women in developing nations; the remaining $30 million will be divided between Grand Challenges Canada, the Canadian Women's Foundation, and the Community Foundations of Canada (Marchildon & Langué, 2019). Accordingly, these investments not only support tangible interventions but also contribute to building the capacity of local actors and institutions to advance gender equality agendas in their respective contexts. 

Gender equality is a key commitment shared by UN Women and Canada. Common objectives include women in all facets of peace and security processes, preventing violence against women and girls, and promoting women's participation in the political and economic spheres (UNWomen, n.d). Gender equality is a key commitment shared by UN Women and Canada. Common objectives include including women in all facets of peace and security processes, preventing violence against girls and women, and promoting women's participation in the political and economic spheres. 

Recommendations: 

There is a need for the ministry to reinforce the integration of gender perspectives across all development policies and programs. A systematic gender analysis should be conducted to recognize and address the specific needs, priorities, and challenges faced by women and girls in different contexts. With mainstreaming of gender, Canadian government can tailor its interventions to promote gender equality and empower women across sectors such as education, healthcare, economic development, and governance across the world. 

Furthermore, initiatives like Equality Fund that directly target gender disparities and promote women's rights need to receive more investments. As such, projects focused on women’s economic empowerment should be allocated more including initiatives aimed at eradicating gender-based violence and discrimination. By doing this Canada may hasten the achievement of its goals for gender equality and enhance the lives of women and girls in developing nations. Other ministries, including National Defense, Trade, Environment, and Climate Change, should model and uphold the goals of gender-based analysis and Canadian feminist international assistance. It is best to create mechanisms for this aim. In order to successfully implement international public policy that addresses global climate change, sustainable development, stability, security, clean growth, resilience, nutrition, health, and agriculture, departments and stakeholders must work together on expertise, technology, and approaches. 

Conclusion: 

Canadian government should offer compressive and a holistic approach towards promoting gender equality and women empowerment. The approach should entail policy coherence, targeted investments, strategic partnerships, and advocacy efforts. Gender-based perspectives should be integrated into policies and programs. This will offer financial support to gender-specific initiatives, collaborating with diverse stakeholders, and promoting global action. While Canada champions for gender equality and women empowerment at international level, it acknowledges the crucial role of sustained efforts, collaboration, and accountability. In comparison to men, women are less likely to be in politics globally, have less access to basic and higher education, are more likely to encounter threats to their health and safety, and have fewer opportunities to participate in the economy. Achieving gender equality and several other international development goals depend on upholding women's rights and giving them the chance to reach their full potential. 

Annotated Bibliography: Marchildon, J., & Langué, G. (2019, June 3). Canada Commits $300 Million to Launch Global Gender Equality Fund. Global Citizen. https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/canada-equality-fund announcement/gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjww_iwBhApEiwAuG6ccOtPk2xG1lFv_9vGbDPw3IorqdCuaS4FWsA4785zGvP9LQ_uWnO_fBoCfA0QAvD_BwE 

In this report,  Jackie Marchildon and Gaëlle Langué (2019)  writes about Canada's significant financial commitment of $330 million in support  of women's rights organizations and gender equality initiatives globally through the establishment of the Equality Fund.  They denote Equality Fund that was initiated by Minister Maryam Monsef introduced the Equality Fund prior to the Women Deliver conference in Vancouver. They note the purpose of the initiative that it aims to leverage contributions from various sectors, including the private sector, philanthropists, and governments, to provide sustainable and flexible funding for women’s organizations and movements. Marchildon and Gaelle mention that the $300 million will be allocated to women in developing countries. Similarly, additional $30 million will be directed to Canadian organizations such as the Community Foundations of Canada, the Canadian Women’s Foundation, and Grand Challenges Canada. 

Blanchfield, L. (2011). UN convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW): Issues in the US ratification debate. Diane Publishing. 

Blanchfield (2011) discusses ratification of Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) since its signing in 1979. He highlights the political landscape involved tin he endorsement of the CEDAW within the United States. Blanchfield analyzes the positions of various political actors like government officials, policymakers, advocacy groups, and grassroots movements. According to Blanchfield, stances of these stakeholders may differ on the CEDAW, influenced by ideological, partisan, and strategic considerations. Additionally, he demonstrates how these dynamics shape the trajectory of the ratification debate, denoting the tensions and negotiations that unfold within the political arena. 

Pedro, S. (2019). Women in Conflict Zones. https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/620690/bp-women-in-conflict-zones-290319-en.pdf. 

San Pedro’s report "Women in Conflict Zones" explores plight of women in conflict-ridden areas, drawing upon case studies from Iraq, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and Yemen. Pedro highlights the lasting challenges faced by women. Women are disproportionately impacted by armed violence, displacement, and gender-based abuse. He denotes the significance of acknowledging women not merely as victims, but as resilient agents of change capable of contributing to sustainable peace efforts. Pedro further mentions the significant role international frameworks including Women, Peace and Security agenda that support women participation in peace progress. Significant challenges still exist despite some progress being felt. Pedro’s report stresses the consideration of early action to tackle the specific needs of women in conflict zones. In the report, Pedro calls nations like Canada to endorse gender equality and support initiatives aimed at defending and empowering women in conflict-affected regions.                                           

Bibliography

Blanchfield, L. (2011). UN convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW): Issues in the US ratification debate. Diane Publishing. 

Gender. (2024, March 11). IDRC - International Development Research Centre. https://idrc-crdi.ca/en/topics/gender Gender equality in Canada. (n.d.-a). https://www.oecd.org/gov/budgeting/Gender-Equality-in-Canada-Highlights.pdf 

Marchildon, J., & Langué, G. (2019, June 3). Canada Commits $300 Million to Launch Global Gender Equality Fund. Global Citizen. https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/canada-equality-fund-announcement/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjww_iwBhApEiwAuG6ccOtPk2xG1lFv_9vGbDPw3IorqdCuaS4FWsA4785zGvP9LQ_uWnO_fBoCfA0QAvD_BwE 

Unwomen. (n.d.). https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/Partnerships/Donor%20Countries/Partners-for-change-Canada-en.pdf