FEWO Committee Report

As a country’s budget reflects the highest level of political will and the socio-economic development policies of its government, integrating gender-based analysis into budgetary processes is a critical step towards equality for women.[306]

Throughout the report, the Committee emphasized that both gender-based analysis and gender responsive budgets are important tools for achieving gender equality. It set out to clarify how these tools can be used to advance the status of women in Canada. During the course of its study, the Committee identified current concerns and challenges facing the federal government in advancing gender equality in Canada. Its primary objective has been to develop a set of recommendations that help build the capacity for moving towards a gender responsive budgeting process in Canada.

Since its inception, the Committee has recognized the need for political leadership in advancing women’s equality. At the same time, it has acknowledged that certain structures must be institutionalized to ensure that all governments are held accountable for achieving gender equality. It is for this reason the Committee has outlined a number of necessary mechanisms for attaining this accountability framework.

The Committee recognizes that the desired objective for gender responsive budgeting is to achieve substantive equality for women. In order for Canada to move closer towards attaining this objective, it must fulfill its international commitments under CEDAW and the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The Committee is also cognizant that Canada’s gender equality commitments must be enforced and rendered sustainable. It has thus recommended the introduction of legislation to promote gender equality. Furthermore, the attainment of Canada’s gender equality objective requires the creation of a Commissioner for Gender Equality to act as a watchdog, to monitor and report on gender equality to Parliament, and to evaluate Canada’s overall attainment of its gender equality objective. In addition, the Committee would like to see the Auditor General of Canada monitor and review the federal government’s implementation of gender-based analysis on a regular basis.

The Committee is convinced that with the central agencies moving towards a higher level of technical competence in gender-based analysis, with Finance Canada adopting a gender responsive approach to the federal budget, and with the institutionalization of accountability mechanisms, women in Canada will see a marked improvement in their status and in their daily lives. At the same time, the Committee is concerned that specific goals and performance targets have yet to be set in order to consistently monitor progress towards achieving gender equality.

While acknowledging that governments do have competing priorities, the Committee would like to see this Government, and all future governments, rise to the challenge and establish an Action Plan for Gender Equality that abides by Canada’s existing international obligations; set concrete and measurable targets for gender equality; and, continuously measure progress towards these targets. The Committee wishes to see this report’s recommendations inform the Government’s Action Plan so that Canada begins to move towards a gender responsive budget.

The Committee would like to remind Canadians that governments throughout the world adopted the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995. In so doing, we committed ourselves “to advance[ing] the goals of equality, development and peace for all women everywhere in the interest of all humanity.”[307]

Finally, the Committee would like each and every Canadian to embrace the gender equality objective. The achievement of this objective will benefit the well-being of all Canadians.