Question Period Note: Women Entrepreneurship Strategy

How is the Government of Canada supporting women entrepreneurs?

•Advancing social and economic gender equality helps build a stronger, more inclusive economy that works for everyone.
•Canada’s first-ever Women Entrepreneurship Strategy has helped more than 490,000 women entrepreneurs get the tools and support they need to start and grow a business.
•The Strategy has also expanded women’s access to financing, delivering more than 35,700 loans to women entrepreneurs across the country.
•The more entrepreneurs the Government of Canada supports, the more resilient and sustainable Canada’s economic growth will be.

Women Entrepreneurs in Canada
Only 17.8 percent of Canadian small and medium-sized enterprises are majority-owned by women, up from 16.8 percent in 2020. Women are more likely to operate younger, smaller, and under-financed businesses in lower-growth service sectors such as retail, knowledge-based industries and tourism. These factors make it harder to access and secure financing.
Women are underrepresented among equity investors, representing only 19.4 percent of partners at Canadian venture capital firms in 2021.

Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES)
Coordinated by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), the WES represents a “whole-of-government” approach to increasing women-owned businesses’ access to the financing, networks and expertise they need to start up, scale up and export into new markets.
The four ISED-delivered WES programs are scheduled to sunset on March 31, 2026.
Other WES programs and initiatives led by federal government departments, agencies and Crown Corporations include:
•Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC): The BDC’s $500 million Thrive Platform Venture Fund and Lab for Women supports Canadian women-led businesses in accessing the capital they need. Since launching in 2022, the Thrive Platform has committed over $76 million in supporting 28 companies and VC funds.
•Export Development Canada (EDC): Since setting targets for Women in Trade in 2018, EDC has served over 4,000 women customers and facilitated $8.7 billion in business for women in trade. EDC has also committed $200 million in equity support through its Inclusive Trade Investments Program, to help create more opportunities for women, Indigenous and minority-owned businesses.
•Farm Credit Canada (FCC): Since launching its Women Entrepreneur Program in 2019 to support women entrepreneurs in agriculture and agri-food, FCC has approved over 5,000 Women Entrepreneur Loans totalling over $3 billion, over six times the original commitment of $500 million over three years.

•Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES) programs from across 20 federal departments, agencies and Crown corporations have supported over 490,000 women; this includes more than 35,700 loans or contributions provided directly to women entrepreneurs.
•Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) deliver four key program streams under the Strategy:
oThe WES Ecosystem Fund helps women entrepreneurs access networks, training and mentorship. Since launching in 2019, the Fund has supported over 176,100 women entrepreneurs.
oThe Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund provides loans of up to $50,000 to diverse women entrepreneurs. Since launching in 2022, the Fund has delivered more than 1,100 loans totalling over $33 million.
oThe Inclusive Women Venture Capital Initiative is strengthening and building a more inclusive venture capital environment. Since 2023, the program has supported over 5,300 women.
oThe Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (WEKH) is a one-stop source of knowledge, data and best practices on women entrepreneurship. Since 2019, the WEKH has participated in or co-sponsored over 5,100 events with more than 202,000 participants.