Sajjan meets academics, experts as part of DPR

The Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Status of Women, today hosted an informative gender-focused discussion with experts in various related fields as part of public consultations taking place across the country to inform a new defence policy for Canada.

Meeting participants included academics and subject matter experts from a variety of non-governmental organizations, including the Institute for Inclusive Security and the White Ribbon Campaign.

Today’s discussion focused on five main points:
How to best assess gender implications in the development of Canada’s new defence policy;
Methods for applying Gender Based Analysis+ in the planning of new operations;
How to ensure a career within the Canadian Armed Forces is appealing to all regardless of gender;
How to apply best practices to ensure Canada remains a leader in promoting human rights and gender equality, particularly in settings where cultural norms differ widely from our own;
How best to promote the strategy of taking gender and other factors (such as age and education) into account during the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies, programs and military operations.

“Today’s session is an important step to ensure Canada remains a world leader in the advancement of gender equality," said The Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Status of Women. "I’m pleased that the Canadian Armed Forces are demonstrating leadership by integrating gender considerations into its processes and policy development. I welcome the opportunity to take part in this dialogue and play a role in the changing culture of this important Canadian institution.”

Participants provided short submissions ahead of the meeting, which were used alongside the public consultation paper to guide the discussion. These submissions are available on the Defence Policy Review online consultation portal at http://dgpaapp.forces.gc.ca/en/defence-policy-review/perspectives.asp.

“Gender equality is a priority for the Government of Canada and for the Canadian Armed Forces," said Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan. "By incorporating diverse viewpoints into our discussions on defence issues, we ensure Canada’s new defence policy is more inclusive, and more representative of Canadians, as well as the women and men who serve.”

The public consultation process will continue to be open for input until July 31, 2016, via the defence consultation website at www.canada.ca/defence-consultations.

Gender-based Analysis+ (GBA+) is an analytical tool used by the federal government to advance gender equality in Canada which assesses the potential impacts of policies, programs or initiatives on diverse groups, taking into account gender and other identity factors (such as age, education, language, geography, culture and income).

In January 2016, the Chief of Defence Staff issued a directive which forms the basis for integrating GBA+ across the CAF. In order to guide and assist the CAF in implementing GBA+, a number of Gender Advisors are being identified, trained and placed in both strategic and operational levels, including in the Chief of Defence Staff’s office.

As of July 15, 2016, the Department of National Defence (DND) has received over 13,300 submissions in the Defence Policy Review e-workbook and over 4,700 participants who have contributed comments and votes through the online discussion forum.

Including today’s session, DND has hosted eight roundtable meetings with key stakeholders as part of the Defence Policy Review.

Previous roundtables were held in Vancouver, Toronto, Yellowknife, and Ottawa with Defence Minister Harjit S. Sajjan; in Edmonton with Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence Kent Hehr; and in Montreal and Halifax, with the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence, John McKay.

A guide is also available online for communities wishing to carry out their own consultations with interested citizens. These events will play an important role in augmenting the work being done by DND and the CAF, helping to ensure that the review process is credible, evidence-based, and informed by the views of Canadians.

All Canadians are encouraged to participate in the consultation process online atwww.canada.ca/defence-consultations until July 31, 2016.