2021-2022 Departmental Results Report: Gender-based analysis plus - Impact Assessment Agency of Canada

Section 1: Institutional GBA Plus Capacity

Under the Impact Assessment Act (IAA), the intersection of sex and gender with other identity factors must be considered in the impact assessment of designated projects. To meet this requirement, the Agency integrates Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus) throughout the assessment process. This analysis applies to the information and studies gathered during the Impact Statement phase and impact assessment reports, which the Agency provides to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Cabinet. Impact assessment reports support the Minister or Cabinet’s decisions on whether designated projects are in the public interest.

To incorporate GBA Plus considerations into project assessments, the Agency has funded research and developed guidance and tools. The Agency also developed and delivered internal training on GBA Plus and required that all staff complete the introductory training by Women and Gender Equality Canada.

In addition, as part of its approach to meaningful public participation, the Agency is committed to ensuring its public participation opportunities are inclusive and responsive to the needs of diverse communities. To achieve this, the Agency is developing best practices to ensure that GBA Plus is integrated into the planning and conduct of engagement activities.

For projects assessed under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 (CEAA 2012), the Agency is required to conduct GBA Plus analyses on proposals submitted to Cabinet as part of the Memorandum to Cabinet development process. As such, the Agency carries out a GBA Plus analysis on all the projects that require a Governor-in-Council decision on whether the significant adverse environmental effects of the designated projects are justified under the projects’ circumstances.

The Vice-President of Operations is responsible for GBA Plus implementation for project-level impact assessments under the IAA. The Vice-President of External Relations and Strategic Policy is responsible for GBA Plus implementation for strategic policy and Cabinet-related work.

Information on project-level impact assessments, including GBA Plus information, is publicly available on the Canadian Impact Assessment Registry. All research funding for GBA Plus in impact assessment is publicly available on the Agency’s website.

The Agency has 0.5 FTEs as a GBA Plus lead within the Strategic Policy Division. The Agency does not have a GBA Plus Responsibility Centre. However, across the Agency, some staff with GBA Plus expertise are integrating this analysis into their work.

Section 2: Gender and Diversity Impacts, by Program

Core Responsibility: Impact Assessment

Program Name: Assessment Administration, Conduct and Monitoring

Target Population: All Canadians

Distribution of Benefits:

Core Responsibility: Impact Assessment

Program Name: Indigenous Relations and Engagement

Target Population: All Canadians

Distribution of Benefits:

Key Program impacts on Gender and diversity:

Not available

GBA Plus Data Collection Plan:

As the Agency begins to implement the Performance Information Profiles and the new Horizontal Results Framework, the Agency will collect GBA Plus data from program areas in the coming years.

In 2021-22, the Agency’s Human Resources Division collected data on self-identification in employment equity groups to support the federal government’s priority to integrate GBA Plus considerations across programs and policies. Through this data collection exercise, the Human Resources Division aimed to:

• provide information on representation across employment equity groups to align with the labour market availability of each group;
• provide information on the intersectionality of employment equity and equity-seeking groups;
• guide decision-makers when applying diversity and inclusion lenses to programs and policies (e.g., non-imperative staffing guidelines or language training criteria); and
• ensure adequate representation from employment equity groups when selecting individuals for an initiative (e.g., vaccination audit and the stay and exit interview pilot program).

Definitions

Target Population:

See Finance Canada definition of Target Group in the User Instructions for the GBA Plus Departmental Summary)

Gender Scale:

• First group: Predominantly men (e.g. 80 per cent or more men)
• Second group: 60 per cent - 79 per cent men
• Third group: Broadly gender-balanced
• Forth group: 60 per cent - 79 per cent women
• Fifth group: Predominantly women (e.g. 80 per cent or more women)

Income Level Scale:

• First group: Strongly benefits low income individuals (Strongly progressive)
• Second group: Somewhat benefits low income individuals (Somewhat progressive)
• Third group: No significant distributional impacts
• Forth group: Somewhat benefits high income individuals (Somewhat regressive)
• Fifth group: Strongly benefits high income individuals (Strongly regressive)

Age Group Scale:

• First group: Primarily benefits youth, children and/or future generations
• Second group: No significant inter-generational impacts or impacts generation between youth and seniors
• Third group: Primarily benefits seniors or the baby boom generation