Question Period Note: Funding programs available for anti-racism

• Canadian Heritage has two funding programs that support communities in confronting racism: the Community Support, Multiculturalism and Anti-racism Initiatives program and the Anti-racism Action Program. There is also a Community Support for Black Canadian Youth initiative.
• In Budget 2018, the Government of Canada announced $23 million over two years to tackle racism and discrimination. This included $21 million in new funding for the Community Support, Multiculturalism and Anti-racism Initiatives program.
• Budget 2018 also provided $9 million over three years to address the unique challenges faced by Black Canadian youth. The majority of these funds were used to create the Community Support for Black Canadian Youth initiative.
• Budget 2019 provided $45 million for the Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy. This included $30 million to support community-based projects which are delivered through Community Support, Multiculturalism and Anti-racism Initiatives program and Anti-racism Action Program.

• The Government of Canada reiterated in the Speech from the Throne that they are committed to combatting systemic racism. The Department of Canadian Heritage (PCH) provides funding through the Community Support, Multiculturalism, and Anti-Racism Initiatives (CSMARI) and Anti-racism Action Program (ARAP) for capacity building projects that will contribute to the recipient's ability to promote diversity and inclusion.
• The CSMARI Program supports the mandate of PCH by building on Canada's strength as a diverse and inclusive society. The Program has three funding components: Events, Projects and Community Capacity Building.
• CSMARI Events runs on a continuous intake model. Applicants must apply at least 18 weeks before their planned event start date. There is no funding decision standard for CSMARI Events. Processing times vary depending on the time of year and associated application volumes. Since the announcement of the pandemic in March, the majority of CSMARI Events have been cancelled, delayed indefinitely, or a small number held virtually.
• A call for proposals was held for CSMARI Projects, Community Capacity Building, and Community Support for Black Canadian Youth from September 10, 2018, to May 31, 2019. A total of 567 applications were received and 229 initiatives were funded for a combined total of $26 million. Despite the record high volumes, the service standard (i.e. 26 weeks) was met for the majority of applications. Note that 26 weeks is a normal funding decision standard for PCH funding programs. A new call for proposals for the CSMARI program will be launched in the fall of 2020. The date of the launch has not been determined yet.
• The ARAP is new program and has a three year life-cycle (2019-20 to 2021-22). A call for proposals was held for ARAP from September 3, 2019, to January 13, 2020. A total of 1110 applications were received. This was a record number of applications, which demonstrated the high need among communities for this support. The funding decision service standard for ARAP is also 26 weeks. 26 weeks from January 13, 2020, is the week of July 6, 2020. To date, no funding decisions have been taken under ARAP, mainly due to the high volume of applications and the COVID 19 pandemic, which slowed the processing of applications in the months of March, April and May. It is anticipated that all funding decisions for ARAP will be taken by early October 2020.

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