On Oct 21, 2022, Sima Bahous, the UN Women Executive Director visited Tanzania advocating for this country’s government to increase its investment in girls. Specifically, she asked government officials, civil society groups, and partners, “to strengthen partnerships, ignite public discourse towards Generation Equality and galvanize action for gender equality and women’s empowerment in the country.” If Ms. Bahous can ask the Tanzanian government with their history of inequality and gender-based violence, surely we in Canada can do the same. Canada’s Honourable Marci Ien, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, met with other G7 Gender Equality Ministers earlier in October. At this meeting, Minister Ien presented the launch of Canada’s gender-based violence youth awareness campaign and Canada’s First 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan. Notably, Minister Ien called attention to the Signal for Help—a Canadian initiative developed in 2020 by the Canadian Women’s Foundation to respond to the needs of women escaping violence it is a way to silently call for help while on video. All of the G7 Ministers agreed to amplify this initiative through their joint statement as an additional tool for addressing gender-based violence.
To learn more about resources and funding available in Canada for organizations working on gender equity and gender-based violence in here is a link to Gender based violence funding opportunities.html