Canada continues to show global leadership through its Feminist International Assistance Policy and used the Women Deliver conference in Vancouver in June 2019 to make significant financial commitments to advancing gender equality worldwide. Prime Minister Trudeau announced $700 million per year in funding for sexual and reproductive health and rights globally by 2023, as part of an annual commitment of $1.4 billion for women and girls’ health over the next ten years. Minister Monsef announced $300 million in funding to the Equality Fund, a unique partnership to catalyze new investments in support of gender equality and women’s rights.
Even with these historic funding announcements, Canada’s official development assistance currently sits at 0.28% of gross national income, below that of its global peers. Canada’s bold Feminist International Assistance Policy will fail to deliver on its promise if it continues to be inadequately resourced. New resources are needed for the Minister of International Development to deliver on her mandate letter commitment to expand programming in unpaid and paid care, and climate adaptation.
Progress was uneven in other areas of foreign policy, which underscores the importance of having a formal feminist foreign policy that provides consistency and coherence across aid, trade, defence and diplomacy.
