National Action Plan: Canada

WILPF's Disarmament Programme has submitted the Brief to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development on Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security. 

Please see the full submittion here>>

NAP Process

The development of Canada’s NAP was inclusive, participatory and included input from civil society organisations. In developing the 2017-2022 Action Plan, the Government of Canada has consulted with civil society, in particular, the Women, Peace and Security Network-Canada (WPSN-C).

NAP Implementation

The NAP addresses the role of civil society in its implementation. The Action Plan Advisory Group will advise the Peace and Stabilization Operations Program (PSOPs)—as coordinator of the Action Plan—as well as the PSOPs Advisory Board on the implementation of the Action Plan. The Group will comprise civil society experts and government officials and will be co-chaired by a PSOPs official and a representative of civil society through the Women, Peace and Security Network Canada (WPSN-C). The Group will be established within the first six months of the launch of this Action Plan. Together, the PSOPs Advisory Board and the Action Plan Advisory Group will ensure the Action Plan implementation is strategic, coordinated, and responsive to new challenges.

NAP Monitoring and Evaluation

Civil society is one of the entities listed as responsible for the monitoring of the plan. One of the entities responsible for monitoring and evaluating the NAP is The Action Plan Advisory Group. The Group will meet regularly throughout the Action Plan’s life cycle to exchange experiences and best practices, discuss challenges and develop innovative solutions related to the implementation of the Action Plan. The Group will also engage with staff from Canadian embassies abroad and women’s groups’ leaders to learn from experiences from the field. The Group will improve progress monitoring by means of a continuous dialogue between civil society experts and government officials who are responsible for implementing the Action Plan. WPS Champions will attend meetings as defined in the Group’s terms of reference. The terms of reference will be developed jointly by the government and the WPSN-C. Monitoring will involve continuous consultation with local women’s organisations that are beneficiaries of Canadian programming and advocacy.

NAP Development

The lead partners in the Development of the Action Plan are Global Affairs Canada, the Department of National Defence (DND) and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

NAP Implementation

The Minister of Foreign Affairs is responsible for Canada’s implementation of the international WPS Agenda and for ensuring that implementation across government is aligned with the government’s foreign policy priorities. Global Affairs Canada, through PSOPs, coordinates the whole-of-government Action Plan efforts.

NAP Monitoring and Evaluation

The NAP assigns multiple bodies to monitor the implementation of the plan including the PSOPs Advisory Board, a whole-of-government forum at the Director General level, brings together departments and agencies involved in Canada’s peace operations and coordinates government policy on the Action Plan and Canada’s role in implementing the WPS Agenda.

The primary objectives of Canadian NAP include:

1. Increase the meaningful participation of women, women’s organisations and networks in conflict prevention, conflict resolution, and post-conflict state-building.

2. Prevent, respond to and end impunity for sexual and gender-based violence perpetrated in conflict and sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers and other international personnel, including humanitarian and development staff.

3. Promote and protect women’s and girls’ human rights, gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in fragile, conflict and post-conflict settings.

4. Meet the specific needs of women and girls in humanitarian settings, including the upholding of their sexual rights and access to sexual and reproductive health services.

5. Strengthen the capacity of peace operations to advance the WPS Agenda, including by deploying more women and fully embedding the WPS Agenda into CAF operations and police deployments.

Each area of work has examples of different actions assigned. For example, Strategic Objective 2 “Prevent, respond to and end impunity for sexual and gender-based violence perpetrated in conflict and sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers and other international personnel, including humanitarian and development staff ” includes the following actions:

1. Strengthen gender and WPS training, including on gender-based violence, for government personnel.

Each supporting partner has its own objectives, actions, and indicators. For example, The Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces first objective, “Further integration of a Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) perspective within National Defence. Baseline: Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) Directive for Integrating UNSCR 1325 and Related Resolutions into CAF Planning and Operations.” Include the following actions:

1. Integrate the WPS Agenda along with gender perspectives into Memoranda to Cabinet, Treasury Board and associated Cabinet submissions, policy documents, appropriation directions, procurement requirements, project proposals, strategies, Operational Plans, Operational Orders, exercises and related peace and security activities.

2. Publish a Department of National Defence (DND) GBA + Directive to provide guidance to the L1s.

3. Establish and hire a DND GBA + Director.

The plan considers gender-responsive budgeting. For each action, the plan identifies financial resources for implementation. For instance, to address objective number 2, Canada launched It’s Time: Canada’s Strategy to Prevent and Address Gender-Based Violence, a whole-of-government approach to prevent and address this form of violence nationally. Budget 2017 included $100.9 million over five years, and $20.7 million per year ongoing, to implement It’s Time.

There are specific indicators for each objective and action. For example, Strategic Objective 2 “Prevent, respond to and end impunity for sexual and gender-based violence perpetrated in conflict and sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers and other international personnel, including humanitarian and development staff. ” includes the following indicators:

1. Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) Integration: GBA+ is an analytical tool to assess the potential impacts of policies, programs, services and other initiatives on diverse groups of people, taking into account gender and a range of other identity factors. DND/CAF is fully committed to using GBA+ in the development and execution of defence operations, policies and programs and used GBA+ in the development of Canada’s defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged. Recognising that conflict, natural disasters and humanitarian crises affect people differently, the Defence team is integrating GBA+ into the planning and execution of operations as a means to both improve operational effectiveness and meet the needs of those disproportionately affected by conflict and crisis.

2. Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Champion: The CDS and the Deputy Minister (DM) named the first DND/CAF GBA+ and WPS Champion. The Champion is a General Officer who will lead efforts to achieve organisational culture change on these issues. Specifically, the Champion will advocate for and support efforts to ensure that respect and equality are the basis of institutional success and GBA+ is integrated into DND/CAF operations and institutions so that it becomes a routine part of all activities, policies and programs across DND/CAF.

3. Gender Advisors: The CAF have established a Director for Integration of Gender Perspectives who will provide guidance and advice on the continued implementation of GBA +. The CAF have also established military gender advisor positions in the Strategic Joint Staff, the Canadian Joint Operations Command, and the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. These individuals will advise on gender in operational planning and doctrine, as well as on inclusion and gender equality when working with other nations. The first CAF gender advisor is currently undergoing pre-deployment training and will be deployed to Task Force Europe in August 2017, and will work with partner nations to seek additional opportunities to deploy gender advisors (GENADS). In addition, each CAF operation now has at least one member fulfilling the role of a part-time “gender focal point”. Gender focal points are trained to advise the operational Commander on gender mainstreaming in a theatre of operations.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs is responsible for Canada’s implementation of the international WPS Agenda and for ensuring that implementation across government is aligned with the government’s foreign policy priorities. Global Affairs Canada, through PSOPs, coordinates the whole-of-government Action Plan efforts.

The Canadian NAP does not offer any specific actions on disarmament. It mentions disarmament in passing in two contexts. The NAP states that at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Canadian mission will support the implementation of the OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality and other OSCE decisions, notably in areas specific to Canada’s objectives for advancing WPS, such as disarmament, and the increased representation of women in managerial positions at the OSCE and in field missions. It also states that In Geneva, Global Affairs Canada will develop a systematic approach to its efforts to mainstream WPS throughout relevant Geneva-based institutions and processes covering security, human rights, humanitarian issues, migration, health, labour, and disarmament, as well as trade and development. Its priorities will include multilateral partnerships to advance WPS, and supporting women of all ages and women’s organisations from fragile and conflict-affected states to have their priorities heard.