I’ve been working in the government for a few years now, and something every public servant will tell you is that each department has an extensive abbreviation repertoire. A common one we hear, especially when we talk about international development, is “FIAP,” which stands for Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy. But I find that unless you work in the government or have friends or family that do, many of these terms remain unfamiliar. So, as we move closer to celebrating International Women’s Day, it’s important for us to know how Canada is empowering women and girls both at home and abroad.
In 2017, Canada implemented the Feminist International Assistance Policy – a progressive policy document meant to address gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. Empowering women and girls make families and global communities more prosperous. The main goal of the policy is to further international efforts to eradicate poverty, and to do this, inequality must be addressed. Women and girls must be supported and empowered so that they can reach their full potential and earn their own livelihoods.
Notably, the FIAP reflects Canadian values about women and girls, and defines an approach with a focus on human rights, taking into consideration the intersections of sex, race, ethnicity, place of birth, colour, religion, language, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ability or migrant or refugee status. The policy also goes hand-in-hand with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, which aims to eradicate poverty by 2030, as well as with the Paris Agreement on climate change, which seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect the environment.
Historically, women around the world have led the struggle for gender equality. Addressing gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls requires widespread transformation of social norms and power relations. This is why the core action area of the FIAP is to advance gender equality and empower women and girls. Since the conception of the plan in 2017, Global Affairs Canada has promised to commit 15 percent of its bilateral international development assistance to implementing initiatives to advance gender equality and improve the quality of life of women and girls. This includes enabling the fight against sexual and gender-based violence, supporting women’s organizations that promote equal rights, enhancing the institutional capacity of the public sector to address gender equality, and finally, building the evidence-base for gender equality action.
Now that I’ve shared the main action area of the FIAP, let’s briefly run through the five other action areas involved in the policy:
- Human Dignity. The FIAP supports access to quality health care, nutrition, and education. Even more, ethical, timely, and needs-based humanitarian assistance that better addresses the needs and potential of women and girls are at the forefront of the policy.
- Growth. Growth should work for everyone. This action area increases equal access to economic opportunities and resources, which ultimately help women and girls achieve the economic independence they need to take control of their lives and be contributors to society.
- Environment and Climate Action. The FIAP supports government planning and initiatives to mitigate and adapt to climate change, furthers women’s leadership and decision making, and creates economic opportunities for women in clean and sustainable energy.
- Inclusive Governance. Inclusive governance means ending discrimination by promoting and protecting human rights, encouraging greater political participation by women and girls, advancing the rule of law, and building stronger institutions.
- Peace and Security. The plan supports the participation of women in peace-building and post-conflict rebuilding efforts, increases women’s representation in the security sector, and enforces a zero-tolerance policy for sexual violence and abuse by peacekeepers.
The FIAP uses both targeted and crosscutting approaches to accomplish its goals. A targeted approach to gender equality focuses on initiatives that combat poverty and inequality by defending the rights of women and girls, with a particular focus on their sexual health and reproductive rights. Additionally, using a crosscutting approach to gender equality allows us to accent our international assistance initiatives, across all action areas, and develop and implement them in ways that improve gender equality and empower women and girls. Doing this also gives international partners and stakeholders room to consult with women and involve them in decision-making processes, planning, and initiatives, as well as in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of projects.
What about geographical distribution, you ask? Well, with this policy, Canada does not limit its international assistance strictly to a list of countries of focus, nor does it disperse its efforts in every direction. Canada ensures that its contributions have the greatest positive impact by addressing conflicts in fragile states and contexts, while fostering economic growth that works for everyone (in the poorest and most vulnerable countries and while also supporting middle-income countries). The focus here is on international solidarity, which is a long-standing shared Canadian value. The reality is that we live in an increasingly interconnected world, and the FIAP will benefit not only partner communities, but also Canadians. Together with stakeholders, partners, and allies, Canada carries a collective responsibility to protect and promote global health and security, education, environmental protection and growth that works for everyone.
Women and girls have the ability to achieve real change in terms of sustainable development and peace. Despite this, they are one the most vulnerable groups to poverty, violence, and climate change. Increasing gender equality can transform households, societies, economies, and the world. Committing to a feminist approach to international assistance demonstrates a huge shift in how we work, move, and live.