2023-24 Gender-based analysis Plus (GBA Plus)

Program: Consultation and Accommodation

• This program targets Indigenous groups that are broadly gender-balanced. While disaggregated data does not currently exist for the program, the opportunity for data collection and analysis will be advanced through discussions and events held with the community of consultation protocol holders.
• In order to reduce the reporting burden for Indigenous communities, tracking the impacts of GBA Plus is encouraged within the existing reporting structure for Indigenous Peoples. For federally-based activities related to consultation and accommodation such as networks, workshops, conferences, and training, GBA Plus considerations will be discussed and/or monitored through data collection and survey/evaluation processes, where applicable.

Program: First Nation Jurisdiction over Land and Fiscal Management

• The regimes build on past successes and create an environment of community-level decision-making that results in increased opportunities for community and social development, supporting the governance and policy development goals of First Nations in order to improve the quality of life of their community members and citizens, and ensure that their diverse voices are heard. The program benefits diverse First Nation communities through strengthened First Nation land and fiscal governance.
• The regimes do not have direct impacts that support the pillars and goals of the Gender Results Framework. It supports First Nations assuming jurisdiction of land and fiscal management, moving away from governance models imposed by Canada, and additions to reserve/reserve creation. The regimes do not require core capacity funding to be allocated based on gender and diversity considerations, and do not collect data on individuals, only on First Nations and First Nations organizations and institutions. While the regimes encourage First Nations to share data on impacts at the community level, there are no requirements for this reporting.
• Activities under these regimes build on other successes, such as how First Nations operating under the Framework Agreement on the First Nation Land Management Act address matrimonial real property through their land code, or how communities operating under First Nation Fiscal Management or First Nation Land Management experience increased potential for economic and social development along with associated benefits from greater economic opportunities. These kinds of successes are examples of community resilience, a protective factor that helps diverse groups of men and women deal more effectively with stressful events and mitigate or eliminate risks in families and communities.

Program: Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement

• The program supports the implementation of the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement. It is accessible equally to male and female applicants, and data is collected on components of implementing the Agreement.
• The program includes secure, protected and confidential data collected from recipients, and adheres to all necessary legal obligations and privacy protocols. Therefore, it does not publicly report on compensation recipient gender identification.
• Gender-based considerations are incorporated into policy guidance for program and service delivery.

Program: Indigenous Engagement and Capacity Support

• This program includes 3 funding mechanisms (Basic Organizational Capacity, Consultation and Policy Development, and the Federal Interlocutor's Contribution Program) to support the engagement of Indigenous Peoples at the national, regional and grassroots level through representative organizations. It is accessible to diverse Indigenous organizations representing or advocating for First Nations, Status and Non-Status Indians, Métis, Inuit, urban, off-reserve, Indigenous women and 2SLGBTQI+ people.
• Funding supports the operational capacity of Indigenous organizations to perform various functions in a sustainable manner, supports their ability to engage with Indigenous Peoples to effectively identify and represent their diverse needs and priorities, and to engage with the federal government to ensure that these interests and perspectives are considered in the development of policy, programs, legislation and services.
• Gender-based and intersectional considerations are incorporated into policy guidance for program management and implementation. There is limited collection of GBA Plus data on gender and diversity impacts. Measures will continue to be taken to ensure that this program reflects GBA Plus perspectives in its work with Indigenous partners.

Program: Indigenous-led Services

• Distinctions-based housing investments and implementation of housing strategies: Due to the varied investment timelines for each Indigenous group, some will have integrated a GBA Plus into their housing strategy frameworks and programs. The housing gaps experienced by each distinctions-based group that CIRNAC funds for housing differ.

Program: Management and Implementation of Agreements and Treaties

• The program supports Inuit, Métis and First Nations communities with modern treaties and self-government agreements. This program has direct impacts on First Nations and Inuit men, women, and gender diverse peoples as modern treaty and self-government agreement holders exercise jurisdiction and responsibilities relating to their political, economic, social and cultural development to improve, amongst other things, the socio-economic well-being of their respective populations.
• As autonomous orders of government, self-governing Indigenous governments have the authority to administer programs and services at their discretion. This program ensures that these governments are provided with consistent funding and equipped to administer programs and services that benefit their communities.
• Studies such as the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (2019) have shown that colonial intervention in Indigenous communities imposed a patriarchal status quo and subjected Indigenous women to systems of oppression. Discussions with self-governing Indigenous governments suggest that self-government has increased their ability to reclaim traditional and more inclusive forms of governance. As groups have begun to exercise their inherent right of self-determination through self-government agreements, Indigenous women are encouraged to return to their vital roles in communities.
• This program does not directly support a specific pillar or goal under the Gender Results Framework, as funds are used to support the implementation of modern treaties and self-government agreements. As such, it is not within the scope of the program to require core capacity funding to be allocated based on gender and diversity considerations.

Program: Negotiation of Treaties, Self-Government Agreements and other Constructive Arrangements

• This program supports Canada's commitment to the negotiation of treaties, self-government agreements and other constructive arrangements, which reconcile Indigenous rights with the sovereignty of the Crown.
• CIRNAC recognizes that, as Indigenous nations work to revitalize their traditional ways of living, GBA Plus and other diversity and inclusion principles provide an opportunity to address the unique experience of Indigenous women, 2SLGBTQQIA+ people, youth, and elders, and to help restore traditional Indigenous governance and economic structures that were disrupted by the Indian Act and other colonial structures.
• The program has direct impacts on the Gender Results Framework, particularly in support of the key area "Economic Participation and Prosperity". The program's work on self-government agreements has had positive effects in areas such as total income, labour force attachment and household incomes.
• Measures will continue to be taken to ensure that this program reflects GBA Plus perspectives in its work with Indigenous partners, and supports Indigenous communities in using intersectional approaches that could strengthen their chosen systems of governance. For example:
  • Federal negotiators will ensure inclusive communication, and be mindful that colonial and patriarchal structures, as well as rhetoric, may impact the type and subject matters of negotiations.
  • Canada will continue to ensure that underrepresented groups have a voice in the engagement and co-development of policies, and will encourage diverse perspectives at negotiation tables where appropriate.
  • All negotiated agreements require the approval of Cabinet and therefore require a thorough GBA Plus, in line with Treasury Board Secretariat and the Women and Gender Equality Canada guidelines.
• In 2023–24, CIRNAC is expected to receive the results of an evaluation undertaken in 2021–22, which will help provide an understanding of the program's effectiveness at applying GBA Plus to its program design and delivery. In turn, this will help CIRNAC identify new ways to implement a diverse and inclusive approach into ongoing negotiation and policy work.

Program: Other Claims

• Resolution of childhood claims in a fair, compassionate and respectful manner contributes to addressing the negative consequences experienced by Indigenous people who suffered harms as children as a result of past Government policies and programs, specifically First Nations, Inuit, Métis and Non-Status individuals located across Canada, living in both urban and remote communities.
• Neither sex nor gender identity were prevalent factors in school or residential placements, or in child welfare decisions, and survivors of abuse are of both sexes and can be of any income level, sexual orientation, or level of ability. However, while there is presently no data available to determine the impacts of this initiative through an intersectional lens, existing research indicates that women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ survivors of these harmful historic programs and policies likely experience disproportionate consequences.
• Effective management and resolution of childhood claims will directly benefit Indigenous people who suffered harms as children as a result of past Government policies and programs, and will have positive impacts for Indigenous communities, including youth and future generations.
• Childhood claims will continue to apply GBA Plus considerations into policy guidance.

Program: Residential Schools Legacy

• The department does not currently collect or generate GBA Plus data during the implementation of this initiative.
• The department is currently exploring opportunities to identify GBA Plus outputs/outcomes and associated data collection strategies for activities under the Residential Schools Legacy Program, as appropriate, in the context of developing the finalized Horizontal Initiative Results Framework, in order for the Federal Framework to address the legacy of residential schools.

Program: Specific Claims

• Specific claims are grievances that First Nations have against the Government of Canada for failing to discharge its lawful obligations with respect to pre-1975 treaties and the management of First Nation lands, monies and other assets. The program provides a voluntary alternative dispute resolution framework that allows the federal government to discharge its outstanding historic legal obligations to First Nations through negotiated settlements. Specific claims settlements can also provide significant resources for First Nations to invest in their self-determined socio-economic development plans and priorities.
• While the intended recipient of settlement compensation is the entire First Nation, including women, men, children and youth, elders, persons with disabilities/health issues, and persons of different genders, Canada's policy is to not interfere with how a First Nation chooses to use its settlement funds. Nor does Canada seek to ask First Nations to report on the use, access and benefits derived by the use of the settlement funds. As such, it is not within the scope of the program to identify impacts of claims negotiations or settlement agreements on individual members of the diverse groups of First Nations in Canada, to address such effects post-agreement, or to require First Nations to provide data on gender and diversity impacts.

Program: Canadian High Arctic Research Station

• Polar Knowledge Canada, as the operator and future administrator of the Canadian High Arctic Research Station (CHARS), is responsible for ongoing monitoring and evaluation of CHARS-related research programs and operations starting since 2022–23. Polar Knowledge Canada continues to use GBA Plus as both an analytical process and as a tool for meaningful engagement to provide information, data and trends that will inform mitigation measures and activities in support of departmental results.

Program: Climate Change Adaptation and Clean Energy

• The Climate Change Adaption and Clean Energy program monitors diversity impacts on a distinction basis. The Northern REACHE program will monitor the percentage of projects that have taken steps to include culturally-competent GBA Plus measures.

Program: Northern and Arctic Environmental Sustainability

• As of 2021–22, the program has included a voluntary question on GBA Plus within activity reports and proposal applications. Responses to date have been minimal, due to 2 factors: 1) reporting requirements over the past few years have been waived due to COVID‑19, and 2) the GBA Plus questions do not require mandatory responses.
• In 2022–23, the Northern Participant Funding Program held 12 engagement sessions with program partners and stakeholder. Each session included dedicated material on GBA Plus designed to create an open floor for conversation. Based on the discussions, the most effective way to promote the inclusion of Indigenous women, youth, and gender-diverse people in northern impact assessments is through the use of social media, community radio calls, and above all, community visits.
• In 2023–24, the program will continue to stimulate feedback from the populations included within GBA Plus, in order to foster their inclusion in the impact assessment process.
• In 2023–24, due to the relaxed COVID-19 restrictions, the program can now resume community visits, which are the gold standard for supporting these communities and populations, since formal impact assessment hearings are often influenced mostly by male hunters' voices.

Program: Northern and Arctic Governance and Partnerships

Program: Northern Contaminated Sites

• The Northern Contaminated Sites Program collects socio-economic data on each of its projects, which include statistics on the number of female, Indigenous and/or northern employees, as well the number of Indigenous and /or Northern businesses contracted for work. This data is used to meet a number of internal and external reporting requirements.

Program: Northern Regulatory and Legislative Frameworks

• In 2023–24, the program will begin collecting qualitative and quantitative information on what steps Indigenous governments, organizations and Northerners who received funding, took to include GBA Plus and intersectional considerations as part of regulatory development activities in the North. Insufficient data provided in previous years negated the program's ability to monitor and report on program impacts by gender and diversity effectively. Since a baseline for analysis and evaluation could not be established in 2022, the program will look at proponent considerations for advancing culturally-competent GBA Plus, while respecting the right of Indigenous governments and organizations towards self-determination.

Program: Northern Strategic and Science Policy

• This program does not collect socio-economic data. Co-development partners to the Arctic and Northern Policy Framework established a set of principles to provide continuing guidance on implementation of the Framework, including that "policy and programming will reflect a commitment to diversity and equality, and to the employment of analytical tools such as GBA Plus to assess potential impacts on diverse groups of people."
• Reporting requirements for the post-secondary initiatives related to the Arctic and Northern Policy Framework are all done by the academic institutions and/or governments receiving funds for those initiatives.
• Post-secondary institutions across Canada are working toward collecting and analyzing demographic data for student enrolment and graduation. For example, the Dechinta Centre for Research and Learning collects robust and disaggregated administrative and performance data and is in the process of establishing an evaluation approach which will analyze outcomes over the relevant funding period. This work is ongoing, and is being adapted to account for the significant impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the design and implementation of activities over the period. Dechinta has been a strong supporter of education for Indigenous women and girls and the issues that they face in acquiring education at a post-secondary level. As part of this, staff and students are encouraged to bring their children to school with them. Dechinta is also gender inclusive, and in March 2022, they published a gender justice toolkit, "Gender and Queer Terminology Toolkit", which has since been shared with GBA Plus networks in the Government of Canada.
• Another example is Yukon University, which tracks student demographics for Indigeneity and gender (female, male, non-specified, gender-diverse / binary). The University also consulted with the Indigenous community in developing its first 5-year strategic plan, including Yukon First Nation governments, and Indigenous Elders and youth. They are committed to reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, including helping them to heal and revitalize their cultures and languages.

Program: Nutrition North Canada

• The program's collaborative approach to working with Indigenous partners supports distinctions-based food security initiatives that respond to the experiences and lived realities of Indigenous communities. Regular engagement with NNC's Indigenous Working Group, its Advisory Board, and the Inuit-Crown Food Security Working Group guides and informs NNC on where to best target food security funding to maximize benefits for Indigenous groups. These engagements recognize the diverse experiences of Indigenous women, children, elders, gender-diverse peoples, and differently-abled persons, and strive to reduce systemic barriers to access.
• The NNC retail subsidy and Harvesters Support Grant are important to individuals and groups more likely to face challenges affording or otherwise accessing food. Ongoing programming will rely on GBA Plus, and this should result in increasing Northerners' resiliency to changing environments, and provide better access to food for residents in isolated northern communities.