Women and Gender Equality Canada’s 2023-24 Departmental results report

From the Minister

As Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, it is my honour to share the 2023–24 Departmental Results Report for Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE). Within these pages, you will see that this year, the Government of Canada continued to take concrete action and deliver results to promote gender equality and inclusion in Canada, while supporting the government-wide commitment to refocus spending and invest in areas that matter most to Canadians.

Equality is the foundation of a Canada where everyone can fully participate in economic, social, and political life. By providing meaningful support to women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people, WAGE is working to break down barriers, forge new paths, and improve outcomes for future generations. Of course, we conduct this important work alongside provinces and territories, women and equality-seeking organizations, and other partners across the country.

As part of our work to eliminate gender-based violence from Canada, I am pleased to report that 13 bilateral agreements have been put in place and we are actively working on our shared commitments of federal, provincial, and territorial governments to work together towards a Canada that supports victims, survivors, and their families. Under the five pillars of the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence, each jurisdiction has the flexibility to address their unique challenges, needs, and priorities. These precedent-setting agreements represent an investment of $539.3 million by the Government of Canada.

Over the past year, we have continued to advance rights and equality for 2SLGBTQI+ people in Canada through the implementation of the Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan. We provided $1.5 million to offset the rising security and insurance costs for Pride events across the country, amid rising levels of 2SLGBTQI+ hate. We also announced a call for proposals to provide up to $25 million for community-informed projects that will address barriers to equality. The Government of Canada continues to engage leaders, experts, and advocates to respond to the needs of 2SLGBTQI+ communities and ensure a safer, more inclusive country for all. 

We continued to fund equality-seeking and women’s organizations across Canada to remove barriers that prevent women from fully participating in the economy. We launched an evaluation of the Women’s Program to ensure our programming stays relevant and meets women’s evolving needs. We were also involved in broader Government initiatives, including affordable housing measures, a Canada-wide early learning and childcare system, and combatting hate and discrimination.

This year, WAGE enhanced its ability to provide research, policy, and Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus) expertise. More specifically, we progressed commitments from the Management Response and Action Plan on GBA Plus, including improving the annual GBA Plus Implementation Survey. The Management Response and Action Plan on GBA Plus also included developing a new GBA Plus Resource Centre to help federal partners better integrate GBA Plus into their organizations.

Budget 2022 committed to establishing a national pilot for the Menstrual Equity Fund to help address affordability barriers and make essential menstrual products more accessible. Over the course of 2023-2024, WAGE partnered with Food Banks Canada to run the pilot program, which tested distribution approaches to support the provision of menstrual products to Canadians in need. It also supported not-for-profit grassroots organizations dedicated to working on menstrual equity and reducing stigma by allowing them to scale up their work in education and raising awareness about menstruation, menstrual health, and period poverty.

Despite progress in recent decades, major gaps and systemic barriers persist for women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people. These gaps and barriers are found in areas such as the impacts of poverty, inequalities in economic participation and leadership, the unequal burden of care, and the pay inequity. Addressing these issues remains a priority for WAGE.

Moving forward our focus will be on assessing our impact, expanding our influence, and better meeting the needs of women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people. Not only because it is the right thing to do, but because advancing women’s and 2SLGBTQI+ equality creates a better Canada for everyone.

The Honourable Marci Ien, P.C., M.P.

Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth

Results – what we achieved

Core responsibilities and internal services

• Core responsibility 1: Advancing gender equality
• Internal services

Core responsibility 1: Advancing gender equality

In this section

• Description
• Progress on results
• Key risks
• Resources required to achieve results
• Related government-wide priorities
• Program inventory

Description

The Department for Women and Gender Equality advances gender equality for women, including social, economic, and political equality with respect to sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity or expression^{Footnote 1} . The Department promotes a greater understanding of the intersection of sex and gender with other identity factors that include race, national and ethnic origin, Indigenous origin or identity, age, sexual orientation, socio-economic condition, place of residence and disability. The Department develops and coordinates policies and programs; and undertakes research and data collection and analyses related to these policies and programs; and raises public awareness through outreach. The Department provides advice to government to achieve Canada’s gender equality outcomes and goals, including advocacy for gender-based budgeting, and facilitates the advancement of gender equality among other partners and stakeholders, through its expertise, contribution to research and funding to community initiatives. The Department serves as a central point for sharing expertise across Canada and with international partners, and uses this knowledge to inform and support Canada’s gender equality priorities.

Progress on results

This section presents details on how the department performed to achieve results and meet targets for advancing gender equality. Details are presented by departmental result.

Table 1: Targets and results for advancing gender equality

Table 1 provides a summary of the target and actual results for each indicator associated with the results under advancing gender equality.

Additional information on the detailed results and performance information for WAGE’s program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.

Details on results

The following section describes the results for advancing gender equality in 2023–24 based on the planned results set out in WAGE’s departmental plan for the year. 

The Department’s interventions facilitate the advancement of gender equality

In 2023-24, WAGE took action to advance economic, social, and political equality outcomes for women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people in Canada.

Results achieved

• In 2023-24, WAGE supported the growth, sustainability, and leadership of 2SLGBTQI+ community organizations through:
  • The 2SLGBTQI+ Community Capacity Fund: WAGE began implementing the delivery of Budget 2022 funding through a call for proposals from March 13 to May 9, 2023. This process resulted in 101 organizations being approved to receive a total of $25.5 million to build capacity from 2023-24 to 2025-26 (make decisions, manage money and people, collaborate, make plans, learn, and drive change.)
  • The 2SLGBTQI+ Projects Fund: In 2023-24, WAGE led stakeholder engagement on policy parameters in preparation for the launch of the call for proposals for the 2SLGBTQI+ Projects Fund. Towards the end of the fiscal year, in March 2024, WAGE began the process to deliver on the Fund by initiating the call for proposals, which ended on April 10, 2024. Recipients of this funding will be announced in 2024-25. 
  • Identified as a priority, funding of $3.6 million was awarded in 2023-24 under both funds to 12 organizations that identified Indigenous 2SLGBTQI+ individuals and communities as a primary population they serve.
  • $600 thousand provided to a national organization to engage Black 2SLGBTQI+ organizations and communities to develop recommendations for implementing sustainable supports for Black 2SLGBTQI+ movements, including the potential creation of a national Black 2SLGBTQI+ organization.
  • Pride security funding: In response to increasing hate and discrimination, WAGE provided $1.5 million in emergency security funding to Fierté Canada Pride, which helped 50 pride organizations across the country to cover the increasing security costs at Pride events during Pride Season 2023.
  • Community-led research: WAGE initiated a call for proposals with Public Services and Procurement Canada for community-led research for 2SLGBTQI+ communities from November 2023 to January 2024. Following this process, contracts will be awarded in 2024-25, which are expected to inform key research and data gaps, specifically related to 2SLGBTQI+ people.

• WAGE supported community action to advance gender equality.
  • On September 1, 2023, WAGE began the implementation of the Menstrual Equity Fund Pilot to support greater access to menstrual products and reduce stigma around menstruation. In partnership with Food Banks Canada, over 74 million products were further distributed to approximately 2,000 organizations across 400 pilot sites in all provinces and territories, reaching over 3.5 million people who menstruate. Additionally, six menstrual equity organizations across the country (The Period Purse, Moon Time Connections, Free Periods Canada, Dignité mensuelle, Project AIM, and Help a Girl Out) were selected to scale up education and awareness activities to inform Canadians about period poverty and reduce stigma around menstruation.
  • On September 22, 2023, WAGE launched the Women’s Economic and Leadership Opportunities Fund call for proposals to support projects that seek to change the barriers women face to economic success, and to accessing leadership positions in society. Projects will begin in 2024-25.

• Preventing and addressing gender-based violence (GBV) in Canada requires a multipronged approach that includes working closely with partners across the country; providing funding to the GBV sector to improve supports and services for victims, survivors and their families; increasing research and closing the data gaps; and raising awareness.
  • WAGE worked collaboratively with provincial and territorial governments to negotiate and finalize 13 historic bilateral agreements to end GBV, using the investment of $539.3 million over five years from Budget 2022. These bilateral agreements are flexible to address each jurisdiction’s respective challenges, needs, and priorities under the five pillars and the foundation of the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence, from coast to coast to coast.
    • Signed, announced, and published GBV crisis hotline agreements which will provide $30 million dollars over five years to all provinces and territories to support regional crisis lines. This funding will help provide more robust services, resources and supports to serve the urgent needs of all GBV victims and survivors, and their families. Results will be published in the 2024-25 fiscal year.
    • Funding provided to over 100 First Nations, Inuit, and Métis organizations will help increase the capacity of Indigenous women and 2SLGBTQI+ organizations to provide GBV prevention programming to address the root causes of violence against Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQI+ people. Preliminary reporting indicates that these Indigenous organizations are seeing positive results in networking and partnerships, organizational governance and financial health, cultural competency, and human resource management.
    • WAGE funded 80 new projects that are developing, implementing, or scaling promising practices that will strengthen the GBV sector to better address the needs of at-risk populations. This was part of a Budget 2021 investment to enhance the Department’s GBV Program with $105 million over five years.
    • Through Budget 2021 investments, 25 community-based research projects are also being funded to build knowledge, which will help address the needs of the underserved in the GBV sector. At-risk and underserved populations include Black and racialized women, immigrants, refugees and newcomers, women living with disabilities, Indigenous women, and 2SLGBTQI+ people.
    • Through a partnership grants funding initiative, WAGE launched the Gender-Based Violence Research Initiative with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council to address significant GBV data and research gaps that would be outside the typical scope of national survey data. Six major studies are now underway and will be essential in informing comprehensive policy discussions across government as they relate to GBV in Canada.
    • Two reports were released in support of the WAGE-funded Femicide Information System: Gender-related homicide of women and girls in Canada and Court outcomes associated with the gender-related homicide of women and girls in Canada, 2009/2010 to 2020/2021. Findings of the first report detailed important data on the relation between perpetrators and victims of gender-related homicide, with extensive examination of regional and urban/rural variances, and of cases with Indigenous victims. The second report examined how the courts treat cases of gender-related homicide and GBV generally.
    • The development and testing of the second cycle of the Survey of Safety in Public and Private Spaces was fully underway throughout 2023-24, with a scheduled launch of early September 2024.
    • WAGE promoted awareness of and activities supporting the need to address and end GBV through commemorative events such as the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence, which included four ministerial statements, one ministerial panel with funding recipients, and the illumination of two federal buildings in purple (the colour also featured in other 16 Days communications products, to reinforce this message and visually unify the campaign). Social media campaigns on Instagram, X, Facebook, and LinkedIn resulted in over 400,000 impressions of both English and French content. The Department experienced a 71% increase in views to the website’s GBV section, from an average monthly view of 9,172 in 2022-23 to an average of 12,912 in 2023-24. The website is publicly accessible to all Canadians and hosts resources, research, and programs related to GBV, 2SLGBTQI+ communities, gender equality and GBA Plus.
    • In 2023-24, the Gender-Based Violence Knowledge Centre hosted five events which drew in an average of 200+ participants, ultimately reaching over 1,000 participants in total. These events reached other government departments, Indigenous partners, stakeholders, and civil society organizations, to promote WAGE funded projects and build awareness of and prevent GBV.  

• WAGE undertook strategic action and engagement to address systemic barriers to gender equality.
  • In 2023-24, the 2SLGBTQI+ Secretariat continued to strengthen its role as a centre of expertise for advancing equality through the continued integration of Sex, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression (SSOGIE) in Government of Canada program and policy development.
  • WAGE implemented the Budget 2022 decision to stabilize and expand funding for the 2SLGBTQI+ Secretariat by hiring an additional 8.5 full-time equivalents (FTEs), since April 2023. This includes a new senior advisor to provide advice on unique issues facing Indigenous 2SLGBTQI+ communities, engage with Indigenous 2SLGBTQI+ community organizations and National Indigenous Leaders and Representatives (NILRs), and identify partnership opportunities across government.
  • To strengthen 2SLGBTQI+ data and evidence-based policy making, WAGE developed and approved a $7.7 million, multi-year 2SLGBTQI+ research implementation plan supported by Statistics Canada to develop research projects related to 2SLGBTQI+ people in Canada.
  • To support the resilience and resurgence of Indigenous 2SLGBTQI+ communities as the first 2SLGBTQI+ communities in Canada, the Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan was included as an Action Plan measure (11) in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act Action Plan in June 2023, underscoring the federal government’s commitment to advancing reconciliation.
  • WAGE established and held quarterly meetings with the Community and Government of Canada Partnership Committee on 2SLGBTQI+ issues to further inform the implementation of the Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan and future actions, and work on implementing key actions outlined the Action Plan.
  • WAGE continued to hold quarterly senior-level interdepartmental governance table meetings with other government department partners to raise 2SLGBTQI+ issues, notably the rise in anti-2SLGBTQI+ hate and discrimination.
  • WAGE continued to engage with the Indigenous Women’s Circle (IWC) and NILRs on WAGE initiatives implicating Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people. For example, it introduced changes to the IWC to regularize its function and enable a member-directed leadership structure as well as remuneration to support engagement on shared priorities.
  • WAGE completed the last of four Canada Pride Citation ceremonies for federal public servants who were impacted by the LGBT Purge. Survivors were presented with an insignia, lapel pin, and a Canada Pride Citation certificate, signed and presented by the Clerk and Deputy Clerk of the Privy Council. These solemn ceremonies not only sought to further reconciliation from the tragic events of the LGBT Purge, but also served to conclude one of the remaining initiatives from the LGBT Purge Class Action Settlement Agreement.
  • Minister Ien co-chaired the 41^st Annual Meeting of Federal, Provincial, Territorial Forum of Ministers Responsible for the Status of Women in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, where she formally presented the Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan. WAGE continued to demonstrate leadership by fostering a robust relationship with provinces and territories. These efforts have been instrumental in advancing bilateral relationships with provinces and territories, and in advancing the Government of Canada’s priorities on women and gender equality, such as the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence.
  • WAGE led Canada’s participation to the 68^th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. WAGE also participated in the G7, G20, Inter-American Commission of Women, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, and Canada’s appearance before the Human Rights Council in Geneva for its fourth Universal Periodic Review. WAGE advanced Canadian priorities on gender equality and empowerment of women and girls in all their diversity, as well as the rights of 2SLGBTQI+ people, through participation in these and other bilateral, regional, and multilateral engagements.
  • Along with Employment and Social Development Canada, WAGE contributed to the Government’s review to strengthen and modernize the Employment Equity Act, including the implementation of the Women Entrepreneurship Strategy with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. It provided evidence-based policy analysis and expertise to ensure that equality for women and 2SLGBTQI+ people are fully incorporated into key horizontal initiatives such as in the development of Canada’s Anti-Hate Action Plan with Public Safety Canada, and the Anti-Racism Strategy with the Department of Canadian Heritage.
  • WAGE engaged and supported the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada in providing safe, stable, and affordable housing to all Canadians, particularly to vulnerable and at-risk populations. WAGE supported on several housing initiatives, including participated in the National Housing Council quarterly meetings, provided guidance and input to Canada’s Housing Plan led by Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada, and participated in interdepartmental committee meetings on housing and homelessness.
  • WAGE improved access to intersectional and disaggregated data by identity factors, for example working with Statistics Canada on surveys and questions parameters.
  • WAGE engaged national, local, and regional women’s and 2SLGBTQI+ stakeholders on policy and programs funding priorities, including related to new funding for the Women’s Program.
  • WAGE undertook initiatives to raise awareness and promote and commemorate gender equality, including Gender Equality Week, Women’s History Month and Pride Season.

The federal government systematically considers gender equality

Results achieved 

• In addition to targeted initiatives, the Government of Canada has sustained its commitment to GBA Plus, which is Canada’s approach to mainstreaming equity and inclusion across government actions. To deliver on mandate letter commitments to enhance the framing and parameters of GBA Plus, the 2023-24 fiscal year included a particular focus on engagement with internal and external partners. This highly participative process generated insights from diverse people working in different organizations and functional areas. In addition to informing action, this knowledge building process helped build new relationships and deepen existing ones.
• WAGE supported the application of GBA Plus throughout federal government decision-making processes. In 2023-24, the Department:
  • Led system-wide enhancements of GBA Plus as part of the work to deliver on commitments outlined in Minister Ien’s mandate letter, and to address recommendations made by the Auditor General and the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology (SOCI).
  • Supported collaboration across the Government and enhanced government structures for more systematic approaches to advance shared priorities.
  • Refined methodology and guidance for a more consistent, rigorous intersectional methodology that unifies the multi-lens approach framework and provides more context-specific expertise and implementation across government departments and functional areas.
  • Delivered the Government Response to the Report of the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology entitled All Together – The Role of Gender-based Analysis Plus in the Policy Process: reducing barriers to an inclusive intersectional policy analysis.
  • Made progress on several commitments of the Management Response and Action Plan on GBA Plus, including improving the annual GBA Plus Implementation Survey, launching the survey in November 2023, and developing a new GBA Plus Resource Centre.
  • Led extensive consultations with provinces and territories, academia, equity-deserving groups, and other government departments on enhancing the framing and parameters of GBA Plus and facilitated in-depth discussions to identify knowledge gaps, solutions, and ideas for strengthened implementation.
  • In collaboration with learning partners, developed and updated GBA Plus curriculum, tools, and resources to grow capacity to apply GBA Plus across all federal departments and agencies.
  • In collaboration with Public Services and Procurement Canada, established a standing offer of GBA Plus consultancy services and created a pool of qualified external experts accessible to all federal departments and agencies.
  • Held GBA Plus Awareness Week in May 2023 for federal public servants which included a WAGE and Canada School of Public Service Signature Event that hosted 2,226 public servant participants.
  • Exercised its recognized leadership with key international stakeholders by participating in eight international engagements and three provincial and/or territorial engagements sessions, sharing knowledge generated over close to 30 years of GBA Plus implementation.
  • Has met its legislative obligations since the Impact Assessment Act came into force in 2019, by advising and assessing the GBA Plus implications of proposed projects in all phases of the Impact Assessment process. For example, WAGE reviewed 75 proposals over the fiscal year and provided advice on GBA Plus, including on GBV prevention.
  • Continued to engage with the IWC, which plays an advisory role to WAGE and includes representation from First Nations, Inuit, and Métis women, youth, and Elders from across the country. The IWC provides expertise to inform federal efforts to address systemic inequalities that Indigenous women experience, particularly in respect to GBV, economic insecurity, and Indigenous leadership. In 2023-24 insights from the IWC helped inform the evolution of GBA Plus to its current intersectional design and application. It now better reflects the interlocking forces of systems and institutional structures, which overlap to create marginalization levels that disproportionately affect certain groups, such as Indigenous women.

Key risks

WAGE’s mandate to advance equality for women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people, and to promote GBA Plus across the federal government, is broad and cross-cutting. Since its inception, WAGE’s responsibilities and expectations have increased, particularly with its lead role in developing and implementing two major action plans. With greater responsibilities and expectations comes the potential for risks to achieving planned results. To assess how the Department’s changing context may affect its ability to achieve its goals and objectives, WAGE undertook a corporate risk exercise in 2023-24 and identified three main risks: capacity management; organizational transformation and change management; and information for decision-making. To address these risks and ensure accountability in management, risk owners within the Department were assigned to monitor risks and contribute to the development of suitable mitigation strategies. The corporate risk exercise has assisted WAGE in managing risk across its portfolio and supporting the delivery of mandate letter commitments.

Resources required to achieve results 

Table 2: Snapshot of resources required for advancing gender equality

WAGE actual spending includes additional funding received through the 2023-24 Supplementary Estimates (B) and is within the department approved statutory and voted funding, outlined in the Funding section of this report.

Complete financial and human resources information for WAGE’s program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.

Related government-wide priorities

Gender-based Analysis Plus

In 2023-24, WAGE continued to incorporate GBA Plus into departmental decision-making processes, including the design and delivery of research, programs, policies, and corporate management. As per the 2023 GBA Implementation Survey – which reports on federal departments’ and agencies’ implementation of GBA Plus in terms of capacity, training, application, access to data, and barriers – WAGE’s implementation of GBA Plus has progressed in the past two years. For example, GBA Plus has been integrated in all of WAGE’s fields of work and GBA Plus training is now mandatory for all WAGE functional groups. Data by various factors are also more available. In terms of monitoring, reporting, and having impacts, WAGE includes three initiatives for which GBA Plus has the greatest impact: 1) Working with provinces and territories to advance the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence; 2) Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan; and 3) Menstrual Equity Fund.

In addition, the Department leverages its internal governance to promote the application of GBA Plus to grow departmental capacity to advance GBA Plus. WAGE committees and networks play various roles ranging from ensuring that GBA Plus is considered in all departmental activities and integrated into all decision-making processes; providing advice; raising awareness; celebrating diversity at WAGE; supporting an inclusive work environment; incorporating diverse perspectives into departmental policies and initiatives; as well as engaging and empowering employees. These communities include the:

• Black Employees Network
• Executive Committee, chaired by the Deputy Minister
• Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility Committee
• Indigenous Employee Network
• Persons with Disabilities Network
• Pride Network

In June 2023, WAGE’s Programs Branch engaged with Indigenous partners, federal departments, and community-based organizations in Canada’s North to discuss proposed policy parameters for the Women’s Economic and Leadership Fund and the Women’s Capacity Fund. Early engagement to inform program design is a core principle of a robust and intersectional GBA Plus. WAGE officials ensured interventions would equitably benefit diverse people from the North. When barriers to accessing program funding were identified and differential outcomes anticipated, WAGE’s Program team developed a Northern Outreach Strategy designed to facilitate the ongoing assessment of gaps. This in turn led to the introduction of a range of inclusive innovation measures, including the following:

• Making a targeted outreach to organizations that have relevant mandates from the North and have not applied for program funding in the past.
• Providing support and increasing collaboration between WAGE officials and Northern organizations on project development (to ensure program parameters do not limit community partners’ ability to respond to Northern needs).
• Building flexibilities into the agreements to reduce the administrative burden on organizations.

United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals

In 2023-24, WAGE continued to collaborate with other federal departments and agencies in line with the Federal Implementation Plan. WAGE is the lead on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls, and facilitate collaboration with other key contributing departments and agencies that have work linked to this SDG. In this capacity, WAGE focused on coordinating the federal initiatives under SDG 5, including monitoring and reporting on the progress through the federal government's annual reporting process on the 2030 Agenda and Canada’s 2023 Voluntary National Review of the SDGs. This involved working with Statistics Canada to ensure the Canadian Indicator Framework continued to be relevant for Canada’s context and addressed emerging gender equality issues. WAGE was also a contributing department for SDGs 1: No poverty; 4: Quality education; 8: Decent work and economic growth; 10: Reduced inequalities; and 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions and provided support to the respective leading departments during reporting cycles. In addition, WAGE led on the cross-cutting objective of leaving no one behind by advancing gender equality, empowering women and girls, and advancing diversity and inclusion. In this role, WAGE assisted other departments in ensuring that their efforts to advance the SDGs reflect this objective. GBA Plus is a critical tool that supports Canada in its efforts to deliver on the 2030 Agenda and more specifically the underlying principle of “leaving no one behind”.

More information on WAGE’s contributions to Canada’s Federal Implementation Plan on the 2030 Agenda and the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy can be found in our Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy.

Program inventory

Advancing gender equality is supported by the following programs:

• Expertise and Outreach
• Community Action and Innovation

Additional information related to the program inventory for advancing gender equality is available on the Results page on GC InfoBase.

Internal services

In this section

• Description
• Progress on results
• Resources required to achieve results
• Contracts awarded to Indigenous business

Description

Internal services are the services that are provided within a department so that it can meet its corporate obligations and deliver its programs. There are 10 categories of internal services:

• management and oversight services
• communications services
• legal services
• human resources management services
• financial management services
• information management services
• information technology services
• real property management services
• materiel management services
• acquisition management services

Progress on results

This section presents details on how the department performed to achieve results and meet targets for internal services.

In 2023-24, WAGE celebrated its fifth anniversary as a department. It has matured as an organization over the last five years and continues to build systems and processes to optimize internal services, so it can deliver on immediate priorities and prepare for the future.

During the year, the Department’s internal services continued to focus on providing effective change management strategies as WAGE supported the Department’s evolution, while ensuring an efficient and effective enterprise-wide approach to setting and delivering on priorities and to integrating strategic planning activities. As a result of collaboration and increased horizontality in 2023-24, WAGE established a more focused agenda for 2024-25. This will be delivered through WAGE’s three key roles of convenor, knowledge broker and capacity builder. In 2023-24, the organization took an integrated business planning approach, including strategic planning sessions, and the development of tools to support employees in developing workplans.

As part of the Government's approach to information technology (IT) and information management (IM), WAGE continued to strengthen its digital capacity and operational efficiency based on user collaboration in 2023-24, while continuing to reinforce cybersecurity.

After successfully implementing the hybrid (combination of on-site and remote work) workplace model as adopted by the Treasury Board Secretariat in 2022-23, WAGE continued to provide employees with the necessary support and equipment to optimize productivity while ensuring the health and safety of all employees. In 2023-24, the Department continued to successfully facilitate a transition to hybrid work by setting up video conferencing systems in meeting rooms and ensuring IT equipment was functional. WAGE pursued digital transformation efforts by upgrading processes, infrastructure, and tools to optimize service delivery and accessibility and to promote employee mobility such as advanced cloud services by migrating the device management system, developing a Power Platform app for pronoun management, migrating the website to a cloud content management solution, and signing the Cloud Framework Agreement.

While pursuing its transition to the hybrid workplace, WAGE continuously adapts and optimizes its internal processes, whether in terms of financial controls, financial management, security, contracting or asset management to align with best practices.

WAGE enhanced information management by revamping file structures and publishing new IT service procedures. It strengthened cybersecurity by securing specialized expertise and implementing critical improvements.

In support of an effective system of internal control and as required by the Office of the Comptroller General (OCG) for small departments, WAGE conducted mandatory core control self-assessments of key control areas. A summary of the assessment results and action plan can be found in the 2023-24 Annex to the Statement of Management Responsibility Including Internal Control over Financial Reporting.

WAGE has significantly expanded its reach and enhanced communication channels over the past year, focusing on improving information flow to and from employees and stakeholders. The "Equality Matters" newsletter, launched in March 2023, has seen a substantial increase in subscribers and outperforms industry standards with high open and click rates. The website underwent a redesign to enhance user experience and content accessibility, showcasing key departmental priorities and impact. Social media channels have also grown, particularly on LinkedIn, thanks to improved management and analytics. The linguistic services team implemented a new model of its editing and translation services, reducing workload and reliance on external suppliers. Internal communications, including the WAGE@Work initiative and WAGE World newsletter, have been strengthened to support employees, especially during the transition to a hybrid work model. Overall, WAGE's communications strategies have led to increased outreach, efficiency, and two-way engagement across various platforms.

WAGE’s Human Resources Branch (HR) refined and provided clarity on the fundamental roles used by HR to add business value. Three strategic priorities – focusing on employee experience, client service excellence, and future-readiness – and a framework were also developed in 2023-24 to guide departmental workforce planning. The establishment of a workforce management committee in 2023-24 led to more effective resource management and enterprise staffing approaches to make best use of available resources in keeping with departmental priorities.

Resources required to achieve results

Table 3: Resources required to achieve results for internal services this year

WAGE actual spending includes additional funding received through the 2023-24 Supplementary Estimates (B) and is within the department approved statutory and voted funding, outlined in the Funding section of this report.

The complete financial and human resources information for WAGE’s program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.

Contracts awarded to Indigenous businesses

Government of Canada departments are to meet a target of awarding at least 5% of the total value of contracts to Indigenous businesses each year. This commitment is to be fully implemented by the end of 2024–25.

WAGE’s result for 2023-24:

Table 4: Total value of contracts awarded to Indigenous businesses^{Footnote 3} 

Through internal engagement and awareness activities, WAGE surpassed its target by awarding a total of $587,737.16 to Indigenous businesses in 2023-24. This amount represents 10.23% of the department’s total contract value for the fiscal year.

The procurement team supplied senior management with quarterly reports on Indigenous procurement target levels, utilizing contracting data sourced from the department’s financial system.

Procurement officers continued to complete mandatory courses offered by the Canada School of Public Service and participated in working group meetings led by Indigenous Services Canada and Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to learn of new updates and shared best practices.

In its 2024–25 Departmental Plan, the Department committed that, by the end of 2023–24, it would award at least 8% of the total value of its contracts to Indigenous businesses. The actual result, however, was 10.23%, exceeding the committed figure by 2.23%. This outcome can be attributed to enhanced engagement with procurement clients and improved internal processes to ensure opportunities for Indigenous procurement are seized.

A recent update to the financial system now allows the Department to easily track Indigenous procurement data. This improved internal tracking enabled more accurate monitoring and reporting.

Spending and human resources

In this section

• Spending
• Funding
• Financial statement highlights
• Human resources

Spending

This section presents an overview of the department's actual and planned expenditures from 2021–22 to 2026–27.

Budgetary performance summary

Table 5: Actual three-year spending on core responsibilities and internal services (dollars)

Analysis of the past three years of spending

The increase between the 2023-24 Main Estimates and the 2023-24 total authorities available for use is due to additional funding received in Budget 2022 for the Menstrual Equity Fund and in Budget 2023 to advance gender equality in Canada. Actual spending is less than WAGE’s total authorities available for use.

More financial information from previous years is available on the Finances section of GC Infobase.

Table 6: Planned three-year spending on core responsibilities and internal services (dollars)

Analysis of the next three years of spending

The decrease in 2026-27 planned spending is due to the ending of time-limited funding such as Budget 2023 funding to advance gender equality in Canada and Budget 2021 funding to advance the National Action Plan to end Gender-Based Violence.

More detailed financial information from previous years is available on the Finances section of GC Infobase.

Funding

This section provides an overview of the department's voted and statutory funding for its core responsibilities and for internal services. For further information on funding authorities, consult the Government of Canada budgets and expenditures. 

Analysis of statutory and voted funding over a six-year period

In this graph, financial figures from 2021–22 to 2023–24 represent actual spending incurred by the Department. Financial figures from 2024–25 to 2026–27 represent planned spending.

The increase from 2021-22 is due to additional funding received in Budget 2022 to work with provinces and territories to implement the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence and the first Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan.

The decrease in 2026-27 is due to time-limited funding ending, such as Budget 2023 funding to advance gender equality in Canada, Budget 2022 funding to renew the 2SLGBTQI+ Community Capacity Fund and Budget 2021 funding to advance the National Action Plan to end Gender-Based Violence.

For further information on WAGE’s departmental voted and statutory expenditures, consult the Public Accounts of Canada.

Financial statement highlights

WAGE’s complete financial statements (unaudited or audited) for the year ended March 31, 2024, are available online.

Table 7: Condensed Statement of Operations (unaudited or audited) for the year ended March 31, 2024 (dollars)

The difference between the 2023-24 actual results and the 2023-24 planned results is due to additional funding received in Budget 2022 for the Menstrual Equity Fund and in Budget 2023 to advance gender equality in Canada.

The 2023–24 planned results information is provided in WAGE’s Future-Oriented Statement of Operations and Notes 2023–24. 

More financial information from previous years is available on the Finances section of GC Infobase.

Table 9: Condensed Statement of Financial Position (unaudited or audited) as of March 31, 2024 (dollars)  

The difference for total net liabilities is mainly the result of a net increase in accounts payable resulting from timing differences in the settlement of the payables and an increase of grants and contributions payable at year end.

The difference for total net financial assets is largely due to an increase in payables at year end. It is also related to an increase in the accounts receivable due to timing of cost recoveries with other government departments net of a decrease of tangible capital assets due to their amortization and the write-off of a software in development.

Human resources

This section presents an overview of the department’s actual and planned human resources from 2021–22 to 2026–27.

Table 10: Actual human resources for core responsibilities and internal services

Analysis of human resources over the last three years

The increase in actual FTEs since 2021-22 is due to additional funding received in Budget 2021 to advance the National Action Plan to end Gender-Based Violence and in Budget 2022 to work with provinces and territories to implement the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence and to support the implementation of the first Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan.

Table 11: Human resources planning summary for core responsibilities and internal services

Analysis of human resources for the next three years

Planned 2026-27 FTEs are decreasing due to the ending of time-limited funding such as Budget 2023 funding to advance gender equality in Canada, Budget 2022 funding to renew the 2SLGBTQI+ Community Capacity Fund, and Budget 2021 funding to advance the National Action Plan to end Gender-Based Violence. This ending of time-limited funding results in a reduction of 130 FTEs in 2026-27 compared to 2025-26. The proportion of the FTE reduction attributed to internal services (15%) is commensurate with other grants and contributions programming.

Corporate information

Departmental profile

Appropriate minister(s): The Honourable Marci Ien

Institutional head: Frances McRae

Ministerial portfolio: Department for Women and Gender Equality

Enabling instrument(s): Department for Women and Gender Equality Act

Year of incorporation / commencement: 2018

Departmental contact information

Mailing address: Women and Gender Equality Canada

P.O. Box 8097, Station T CSC

Ottawa, ON K1G 3H6

Telephone: Toll Free:1-855-969-9922 and Local: 613-995-7835

TTY: 819-420-6905

Fax: 819-420-6906

Email: FEGC.Info.WAGE@fegc-wage.gc.ca

Website(s): https://www.canada.ca/en/women-gender-equality.html

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables are available on WAGE’s website:

• Details on transfer payment programs
• Gender‑based analysis plus
• Response to Parliamentary committees and external audits
• Horizontal initiatives
• United Nations 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals

Federal tax expenditures

The tax system can be used to achieve public policy objectives through the application of special measures such as low tax rates, exemptions, deductions, deferrals and credits. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for these measures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures. This report also provides detailed background information on tax expenditures, including descriptions, objectives, historical information and references to related federal spending programs as well as evaluations and GBA Plus of tax expenditures.

Definitions

2SLGBTQI+ (2ELGBTQI+)

Two spirit people, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and the “+” is inclusive of people who identify as part of sexual and gender diverse communities, who use additional terminologies. Note: the evolution of language within communities may inform future evolutions of this acronym.

appropriation (crédit)

Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)

Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, departments or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

core responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)

An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a core responsibility are reflected in one or more related departmental results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan (plan ministériel)

A report on the plans and expected performance of an appropriated department over a 3year period. Departmental Plans are usually tabled in Parliament each spring.

departmental priority (priorité)

A plan or project that a department has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired departmental results.

departmental result (résultat ministériel)

A consequence or outcome that a department seeks to achieve. A departmental result is often outside departments’ immediate control, but it should be influenced by program-level outcomes.

departmental result indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)

A quantitative measure of progress on a departmental result.

departmental results framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)

A framework that connects the department’s core responsibilities to its departmental results and departmental result indicators.

Departmental Results Report (rapport sur les résultats ministériels)

A report on a department’s actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

Full-time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)

A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person-year charge against a departmental budget. For a particular position, the fulltime equivalent figure is the ratio of number of hours the person actually works divided by the standard number of hours set out in the person’s collective agreement.

gender-based analysis plus (GBA Plus) (analyse comparative entre les sexes plus [ACS Plus])

An analytical tool used to assess support the development of responsive and inclusive how different groups of women, men and gender-diverse people experience policies, programs and policies, programs, and other initiatives. GBA Plus is a process for understanding who is impacted by the issue or opportunity being addressed by the initiative; identifying how the initiative could be tailored to meet diverse needs of the people most impacted; and anticipating and mitigating any barriers to accessing or benefitting from the initiative. GBA Plus is an intersectional analysis that goes beyond biological (sex) and socio-cultural (gender) differences to consider other factors, such as age, disability, education, ethnicity, economic status, geography (including rurality), language, race, religion, and sexual orientation.

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)

For the purpose of the 2023–24 Departmental Results Report, government-wide priorities are the high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the November 23, 2021, Speech from the Throne: building a healthier today and tomorrow; growing a more resilient economy; bolder climate action; fight harder for safer communities; standing up for diversity and inclusion; moving faster on the path to reconciliation; and fighting for a secure, just and equitable world.

horizontal initiative (initiative horizontale)

An initiative where two or more federal departments are given funding to pursue a shared outcome, often linked to a government priority.

Indigenous business (entreprise autochtones)

For the purpose of the Directive on the Management of Procurement Appendix E: Mandatory Procedures for Contracts Awarded to Indigenous Businesses and the Government of Canada’s commitment that a mandatory minimum target of 5% of the total value of contracts is awarded to Indigenous businesses, a department that meets the definition and requirements as defined by the Indigenous Business Directory. 

non‑budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires)

Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance (rendement)

What a department did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the department intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

performance indicator (indicateur de rendement)

A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an department, program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.

plan (plan)

The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how a department intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally, a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead to the expected result.

planned spending (dépenses prévues)

For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts presented in Main Estimates.

A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

program (programme)

Individual or groups of services, activities or combinations thereof that are managed together within the department and focus on a specific set of outputs, outcomes or service levels.

program inventory (répertoire des programmes)

Identifies all the department’s programs and describes how resources are organized to contribute to the department’s core responsibilities and results.

result (résultat)

A consequence attributed, in part, to an department, policy, program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single department, policy, program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the department’s influence.

statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives)

Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

target (cible)

A measurable performance or success level that a department, program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures (dépenses votées)

Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an appropriation act. The vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.