Prime Minister Releases Supplementary Mandate Letters for Ministers: Highlights for CanWaCH Members

Supplementary Ministerial mandate letters were released today by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Of note to CanWaCH members are the letters for the Minister of International Development, the Minister of Health, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Women and Gender Equality.

Minister of International Development, the Honourable Karina Gould

• With the support of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Public Services and Procurement and the Minister of Health, reinforce international efforts to ensure that people around the world have access to health interventions to fight COVID-19, including vaccines, therapeutics and strengthened health systems.
  
• Increase investments in international development to support developing countries on their economic recoveries and resilience.
  
• Noting the demands COVID-19 has placed on front-line health workers and the disproportionate impact this has on women, continue to develop programming that recognizes, reduces and addresses the unequal distribution of paid and unpaid care work, and that supports and protects the rights of paid and unpaid care workers, to address a root cause of global inequality.
  
• In support of the COVID-19 economic recovery in developing countries, continue collaborating with new and existing partners in civil society and the private sector on innovative financing, including through the continued implementation of initiatives such as the International Assistance Innovation Program, FinDev Canada, the Sovereign Loans Program and the Equality Fund, and ensure these are fully aligned with Canada’s feminist approach to development.

Minister of Health, the Honourable Patty Hajdu

• Support the Minister of International Development to reinforce international efforts to ensure that people around the world have access to health interventions to fight COVID-19, including vaccines, therapeutics and strengthened health systems.

Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable Marc Garneau

• Support the Minister of International Development to reinforce international efforts to ensure that people around the world have access to health interventions to fight COVID-19, including vaccines, therapeutics and strengthened health systems.
• Building on ongoing consultations, continue to develop and implement Canada’s feminist foreign policy with the support of colleagues and partner organizations.

• Working with relevant ministers, protect Canadians by contributing to the global response to COVID-19, championing multilateral approaches to related challenges and reinforcing Canada’s international relationships. As part of these efforts, continue to provide timely consular advice and support to Canadians abroad.

Minister for Women and Gender Equality, the Honourable Maryam Monsef

• With the support of the Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance and the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, work with the Minister of Diversity and Inclusion and Youth on a process of evaluating Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) with the goal of enhancing the framing and parameters of this analytical tool, and with particular attention to the intersectional analysis of race, indigeneity, disability and sexual identity, among other characteristics.

• Support the Minister of Health to ensure that every Canadian, including in rural and remote areas, has access to a family doctor or primary health care team and to continue to expand capacity to deliver virtual health care.