Implement a strategy against gender violence.

What success looks like

Reduced gender-based violence, greater awareness of gender-based violence and better support and services for survivors.

Government's narrative on progress

In June 2017, the government launched It's Time: Canada's Strategy to Prevent and Address Gender-Based Violence, which takes a whole-of-government approach to preventing gender-based violence (GBV), supporting survivors and their families, and promoting responsive justice and legal systems. Key elements of the Strategy have now been implemented. On December 10, 2018 , the Gender Based Violence Knowledge Centre Online platform was launched to align federal resources, fill gaps in evidence and data, support federal coordination and accountability for the Strategy, and connect service providers with researchers and policy makers. To date, Canada has invested over $200 million in new programs to implement, test and potentially scale up promising approaches to prevent GBV. This includes child maltreatment, teen dating violence, bullying and cyberbullying. The investment is serving to test promising practices to address gaps in support for diverse and underserved groups of survivors in Canada; to enhance capacity to combat online child sexual exploitation; to increase access to sexual assault services for military personnel and their families; to develop and deliver cultural competency training for federal law enforcement officers; to enhance the settlement program; to equip allied health professionals to provide appropriate care to victims; and to support members of the Canadian Armed Forces and their families affected by violence. Budget 2018 also supported efforts to engage men and boys in promoting gender equality. Building on investments announced in Budget 2018 to establish a National Human Trafficking Hotline, Budget 2019 announced the government’s intention to develop a new whole-of-government strategy to combat human trafficking. Budget 2019 proposes to invest a further $22.24 million over three years, starting in 2019–20, to combat child sexual exploitation online. Both of these initiatives are in addition to the Strategy announced in 2017. In April 2018 Statistics Canada launched a new national survey to collect data on GBV, the first such survey in Canada. Data collection on this survey was completed on December 31, 2018. Results are anticipated for Fall 2019. In February 2019, Statistics Canada launched a second survey on GBV aimed at filling knowledge gaps on the specific experiences of postsecondary students in the provinces.

Note: this is the government's own description, not an independent assessment.