Backgrounder: Government of Canada announces investment that will help improve women’s economic security in the Mauricie region

Women and Gender Equality Canada – Women’s Program

One of the ways Women and Gender Equality Canada advances gender equality in Canada is by providing funding to eligible organizations through the Women’s Program. Projects are selected via calls for proposals on specific themes, as well as through a continuous intake process that allows the Women’s Program to address emerging issues as they arise.                                                  

The Women’s Program funds projects that address systemic barriers to women’s equality in three priority areas: ending violence against women and girls; improving the economic security and prosperity of women and girls; and encouraging women and girls in leadership roles.

Calls for Proposals – Support for Women’s Economic Security and Addressing the Economic Security and Prosperity of Indigenous Women

On October 2, 2017, the Minister launched two calls for proposals. The first call for proposals, entitled Support for Women’s Economic Security, invited organizations to apply for funding for projects to address the economic security of women and help advance gender equality in Canada. More than 30 projects received a total of $10 million in funding through this call for proposals.

This first call for proposals is divided into two themes. The first theme is Building Partnerships to Address Systemic Barriers, which provides funding to address major barriers that limit women’s economic security. This theme includes, but is not limited to, the accessibility of childcare, the gender wage gap and pay inequity. The second theme, Increasing Private Sector Leadership and Investments in Women, encourages organizations to partner with the private sector to find innovative solutions that will help advance women’s economic security.

The second call for proposals, entitled Addressing the Economic Security and Prosperity of Indigenous Women, invited organizations to foster collaboration between Indigenous women, Indigenous organizations, their communities, and the private sector to support the economic security and prosperity of Indigenous women across Canada. Fifteen projects across the country received nearly $5 million in funding through this call for proposals.

Mauricie Region’s Project

Today’s announcement profiles one project in the Mauricie region for federal funding through the Support for Women’s Economic Security call for proposals:

Table de concertation du mouvement des femmes de la Mauricie

Project title: Women’s access to employment in Mauricie, a priority!
Funding amount: $249,066

This 36-month project aims to improve access to employment for women, including newcomers and Indigenous women, in the Mauricie region. Through project activities, various systemic barriers on the path to employment for women in vulnerable situations will be reduced.

The project fosters the development of a consultation on the issue of women’s access to employment to better inform stakeholders, in particular elected municipal officials and project promoters, who will contribute to the implementation of the Mauricie region’s development priorities adopted in 2017.

The Table de concertation du mouvement des femmes de la Mauricie is working with partners in key employability sectors to assist them in adapting practices, and in applying a Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) to the advocacy platforms of at least one regional coalition so that it can better defend the rights of women in vulnerable situations.

In order to promote these changes, a regional intersectoral action plan to improve women’s access to employment is being developed and implemented.

Recognized as a multisectoral regional women’s movement in the Mauricie region, the Table de concertation du mouvement des femmes de la Mauricie has been working to improve women’s living conditions since 1982. The organization is made up of various groups, committees and individual members from different backgrounds such as health and social services, local and regional development and collective advocacy.