Question Period Note: Gender Equity in Sport

Canadian women and girls have a rich history of participation and leadership in sport; however, they continue to face barriers to full participation and representation in the Canadian sport system, at all levels and in all capacities.

• Our government is committed to creating an environment where women and girls can engage in sport at all ages and all levels.
• Budget 2018 dedicated $30 million to increase the representation and participation of women and girls in sport.
• A Gender Equity Secretariat has been created to deliver a Gender Equity Strategy and support initiatives aimed at attracting and retaining women and girls in sport.

• The Gender Equity Secretariat has been tasked with developing, implementing, and monitoring a Gender Equity Strategy.
• Through the Secretariat, Sport Canada will be supporting, administering and monitoring existing and emerging gender equity initiatives and programs aimed at attracting and retaining women and girls in sport, as well as initiatives to introduce women and girls to sport at all levels, including as athletes, coaches, officials, and leaders.
Participation of Women and Girls in Sport
• On September 27, 2017, the Committee tabled its seventh report which contains
16 recommendations for the Government of Canada’s actions grouped into six themes: 1) overview of the legal and policy framework of Sport Canada; 2) sport participation of women and girls in Canada; 3) issues relating to female coaches and referees; 4) women as leaders in sport; 5) the media and women in sport; and 6) sexual harassment and transgender inclusion in sport.
• According to the research, 84% of Canadian women are missing out on the benefits of sport (e.g. 41% of girls between the ages of 3 17 and 84% of adult women do not participate in sport).
• Other key findings showed that only 24% of all Athletic Director positions and 17% of all head coaching spots in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) are held by females. Moreover, among national and multi-sport organizations, only 38% of senior staff and 29% of board members are female. A review of programming data from Canada’s primary national sports networks concluded that of approximately 35,000 hours in programming in 2014, only 4% went towards the coverage of women’s sports, with over half of that percentage due to women’s professional tennis coverage and the Sochi Olympics. Only 5% of the total of top national print media sports coverage researched was dedicated to women.
• The Working Group on Gender Equity in Sport, comprised of 12 expert members, met four times in 2018. Members of the Working Group discussed challenges and proposed solutions to eliminate barriers and increase participation, and submitted a final report with their recommendations in December 2018.
• Sport Canada officials contributed to the Federal-Provincial/Territorial Work Group on Women and Girls in Sport that was established to provide recommendations on initiatives aimed at increasing the participation of women and girls in all facets of sport. Three years of work by this group culminated with Federal-Provincial/Territorial Ministers responsible for sport, physical activity and recreation accepting the majority of the recommendations contained in the work group’s Recommendation Report at their recent meeting in Red Deer, Alberta, on February 14 and 15, 2019.
• On February 22, 2019, Sport Canada launched the Innovation Initiative, which will provide funding to eligible organizations for testing innovative approaches to encourage women and girls to participate and remain in sport.
• Through Budget 2018, the Government is setting a target to achieve gender equality in sport at every level by 2035, and proposes to provide an initial $30 million over three years to support data and research, and innovative practices to promote women’s and girls’ participation in sport, and provide support to national sports organizations to promote the greater inclusion of women and girls in all facets of sport.
• Using funds from the Budget 2018 announcement, the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women in Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) is receiving $3 million over four years for multiple initiatives aimed at increasing the participation of women and girls in sport and increasing women in leadership positions such as coaches, officials, and sport organization leaders. These initiatives include: gender-based analysis plus training; a gender equity audit service; gender equity action plans; a system-wide report card; scaled-up Women and Leadership and Female Coach Mentorship programs; an empathy-based campaign; and a scaled-up Women in Sport Encouragement Fund.

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