immigration, refugees and citizenship canada progress … · 2018. 10. 15. · 4 within permanent...

CANADA’S NATIONAL ACTION PLAN ON WOMEN,

PEACE AND SECURITY

2017-2022

IMMIGRATION, REFUGEES AND CITIZENSHIP

CANADA

Progress report for fiscal year 2017/18

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IMMIGRATION, REFUGEES AND CITIZENSHIP CANADA

IMMIGRATION, REFUGEES AND CITIZENSHIP CANADA AND WOMEN, PEACE AND SECURITY

In keeping with the principles of the Canadian National Action Plan (the Action Plan) on Women Peace and Security (WPS), Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) recognizes that women and children are particularly vulnerable to being targeted for sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in situations of conflict and state fragility. As a result, the department has put in place a number of policies and programs designed to provide protection to women and children in protracted conflict situations.

FORWARD-LOOKING APPROACH: PRIORITY AREAS TO SUPPORT ACTION PLAN IMPLEMENTATION

The department has set out three priority areas for integrating the Action Plan into its activities as a supporting partner in response to helping women and girls in conflict zones. These priorities consist of governance, accountability and training/education.

1. GOVERNANCE

Context: The department’s first priority area for integrating the Action Plan into its activities is governance. Stemming from the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, its regulations, and the operational guidance provided to staff, IRCC strives to ensure that gender and human rights factors are considered in the department’s policies, programs and processes. In addition, IRCC uses Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) as an analytical tool to bring gender and identity perspectives into its work. This allows for a more integrated and comprehensive understanding of the impacts and implications of policies, programs and initiatives on women and girls, especially where the vulnerability of individuals is of particular concern.

OBJECTIVES

1.1 Gender is integrated in relevant IRCC program and applications processes

Activities: 1.1.1 Implement an integrated (holistic) approach to gender to include GBA+

while processing applications through the immigration continuum. 1.1.2 Strengthen the use of GBA+ in the department’s assessment of policies,

programs and procedures, including existing policies or operational guidance.

1.1.3 Establish a framework to assess vulnerability of women, girls, and gender-diverse people.

1.1.4 *Effective implementation of the Action Plan through support of IRCC senior management.

Indicators:

1.1.1 Creation and implementation of a policy framework for defining vulnerability.

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Progress achieved as of March 31, 2018:

IRCC started the development of a policy framework for defining vulnerability.

Completed Activities:

Conducted a department-wide exercise to identify activities and develop indicators to join as a supporting partner and implement the second Action Plan 2017-2022.

As the only federal department with the legislative requirement to report on GBA+ in its Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration, IRCC highlighted key GBA+ work in the Report, including issues of resettlement, protected persons, settlement; all key areas of importance in IRCC’s Implementation Plan for the Action Plan.

Participated in the annual GBA+ survey by Status of Women Canada (SWC) to report on the application of GBA+ within the department.

A Gender and Strategic Priorities Unit within the department continued to provide overall advice and guidance to the department on GBA+ considerations within IRCC policies, programs and initiatives.

Started developing a vulnerability framework to align policy tools targeted to different vulnerable groups along the immigration continuum and for building the evidence base on the outcomes of vulnerable groups, including women, girls and gender-diverse people.

Results and Progress: During the reporting period, to create and implement a policy framework for defining vulnerability, IRCC started the development of a framework to align policy tools targeted to different vulnerable groups along the immigration continuum. The policy framework also aims at building the evidence base on the outcomes of vulnerable groups, including women, girls and gender-diverse people. In addition to meeting the legislative requirement to report on GBA+ in the 2017 Annual Report to the Parliament on Immigration, the department further enhanced the GBA+ component through the incorporation of sex-disaggregated data throughout the report. Also, the section traditionally devoted to gender-based analysis focused on more enhanced gender and other intersectional identity considerations in immigrant outcomes, economic immigration, family reunification, resettlement and settlement.

1.2 IRCC programs (domestically and abroad) contribute to the Action Plan

Activities: Support the implementation of the Action Plan through a variety of IRCC programs, by integrating a gender-based perspective along IRCC’s immigration continuum:

I- Refugee Program a) Asylum 1.2.1 Consider gender-specific factors in the Pre-Removal Risk Assessment

determination process for failed asylum claimants. 1.2.2 Conduct country monitoring and analysis which include emphasis on

vulnerable population (women, girls and gender-diverse people) for the Pre-Removal Risk Assessment -Bar Exemption.

1.2.3 Implement instructions for the delivery of IRCC programs to ensure that vulnerable persons benefit from consideration to their physical comfort,

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sensitivity to any cultural and/or gender issues, and are able to choose the gender of the interviewing officer.

b) Resettlement 1.2.4 Continue to resettle the most vulnerable groups, including women and girls

from abroad. 1.2.5 Maintain high priority on the protection of refugee women and recognize

their unique protection needs through the Women at Risk program. 1.2.6 Complete the resettlement of 1,200 Survivors of Daesh, including

vulnerable Yazidi women and children, by the end of 2017. 1.2.7 Provide Resettlement Assistance Program for 12 months to Government

Assisted Refugees ; 6 months to Blended Visa Office Referred refugees; and 3 months to LGBTQ+1 refugees who are privately sponsored (through a cost-sharing arrangement with Rainbow Refugee society); as well as Joint Assistance Sponsorship for up to 24 months to refugees who are identified as having special needs.

II- Settlement Program 1.2.8 Continue to fund and implement a range of targeted settlement services

that can be accessed by newcomer women, including refugees, such as mentoring, information and orientation on rights and responsibilities, employment, language supports, and family and gender-based violence (GBV) prevention support, as well as support services which include childcare, transportation assistance, translation, interpretation, temporary crisis counseling, and provisions for addressing disabilities, to reduce barriers to access settlement services.

1.2.9 As part of It’s Time: Canada’s Strategy to Prevent and Address Gender-Based Violence (GBV Strategy), implement enhancements to the Settlement Program to offer place-based services for newcomers who may face challenges in accessing GBV supports and to provide training for front-line settlement workers to help identify GBV and make appropriate referrals to support immigrant and refugee women and girls.

III- Immigration Program 1.2.10 Provide humanitarian and compassionate consideration for individuals,

including women and girls, who are not asylum claimants but who may nonetheless have special circumstances that should be taken into consideration in the assessment of their application for Permanent Resident status.

1.2.11 Continue to uphold April 2017 repeal of the regulatory requirement that previously applied to some sponsored spouses or partners of Canadian citizens and permanent residents to live with their sponsor for two years as a condition to maintaining their permanent resident status.

1.2.12 Continue to uphold June 2015 regulatory changes to increase the minimum age of a recognized spouse from 16 to 18 in all permanent and temporary immigration programs and to ensure that marriages conducted by proxy, telephone, fax, Internet or other similar forms are not recognized

1 For the purpose of consistency, the departmental report will be using the acronym “LGBTQ+”. The Government of Canada

promotes the use of “LGBTQ2”, which recognizes two-spirit identity within Canada’s Indigenous communities. Nationally and internationally several different variations are used as organizations choose acronyms that are representative of their organizations and clients. Other commonly used acronyms include, but are not limited to: LGBT, LGBTI, LGBTQ and LGBT2SQ+.

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within permanent and temporary immigration programs.

Indicators: I- Refugee Program a) Asylum 1.2.1 Number of Pre-Removal Risk Assessment determination cases that

consider gender-specific factors.

1.2.2 Number of monitoring and analysis reports with emphasis on vulnerable population (women, girls and LGBTQ+) within a conflict-zone.

1.2.3 Number of Operational Bulletins, or clarifications on new/existing policies or procedures, that include gender and human rights considerations.

b) Resettlement 1.2.4 Number of female applicants (and/or female dependants) who came to

Canada through the Women at Risk Program. 1.2.5 Number of women and girls Survivors of Daesh resettled in Canada in 2017. 1.2.6 Number of refugee women (and girls) who received Resettlement

Assistance Program and Joint Assistance Sponsorship. II- Settlement Program 1.2.7 Percentage of Annual Budget allocated to settlement services specific for

women. 1.2.8 Number of new settlement services based on gender violence interventions

for newcomer women and families (such as activities to mitigate the risks of exposure to GBV by strengthening knowledge of Canadian laws, social cohesion, and referrals to essential community supports specializing in violence prevention).

1.2.9 Number of female clients who access each component of the Settlement Program (information and orientation, needs assessment and referral, language training, employment related services, community connections, and support services.

1.2.10 Percentage of newcomers and settlement workers who receive interventions funded by the GBV Strategy enhancement to the Settlement Program that report increased knowledge of GBV and awareness of available services.

III- Immigration Program 1.2.11 Number of women and girls who applied and were allowed to stay in

Canada based on humanitarian and compassionate considerations.

Progress achieved as of March 31, 2018: I- Refugee Program a) Asylum

1 monitoring and analysis report with emphasis on vulnerable populations was produced in FY 2017/18.

b) Resettlement

Canada resettled 26,980 refugees in 2017, 48% of whom were women and girls.

Canada resettled 415 vulnerable refugees through the Women at Risk program in 2017, 305 (73%) of whom were women and girls.

Canada resettled 1,322 people, 55% of whom were women and girls through the Survivors of Daesh initiative (October 2017 - April 29, 2018).

IRCC assisted the resettlement of 4,430 women and girls through its

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Resettlement Assistance Program and Joint Assistance Sponsorship program.

II- Settlement Program

IRCC invested over $730 million to support the settlement needs of newcomers outside of Quebec, more than half of these clients were women.

In 2016, of the 410,000 clients who accessed at least one Settlement Program service in Canada (outside of Quebec), 57% were women.

3 service provider organizations are delivering gender-based violence programming through the GBV Strategy, and two contribution agreements were signed in early FY 2018/19.

III- Immigration Program

In 2017, nearly 3,300 women and girls applied to stay in Canada based on humanitarian and compassionate considerations, and just over 1,750 women and girls were approved.


IRCC supported the implementation of the Action Plan through a variety of IRCC programs by integrating a gender-based perspective along IRCC’s immigration continuum, including its Refugee, Settlement and Immigration programs.

I - Refugee Program a) Asylum

Pre-Removal Risk Assessment officers continued to take into consideration gender-specific factors put forward by applicants, whether or not they were refugee claimants.

Responding to its protection mandate, the Country Risk Assessment Unit within the Refugee Affairs Branch of IRCC continued ongoing monitoring of human rights conditions of vulnerable populations (women, girls and gender-diverse people) around the world; this monitoring was part of daily monitoring of sudden changes in country conditions, for the Pre-Removal Risk Assessment Bar Exemption.

Program delivery instructions for in-Canada claims included a section on the Processing of in-Canada claims for refugee protection of minors and vulnerable persons, which take into consideration the importance of special accommodation for these persons.

b) Resettlement

Canada resettled 26,980 refugees in 2017, 48% of whom were women and girls.

In March 2018, Canada completed its commitment to resettle Survivors of Daesh, including vulnerable women and children.

Canada provides direct financial support and essential services to government-assisted refugees and other eligible clients through its Resettlement Assistance Program. In FY 2017/18, 7,865 government-assisted refugees were admitted to Canada and identified to begin receiving up to 12 months of income support, while 35 high-needs government-assisted refugees were identified as special needs cases requiring up to 24 months of income support through Joint Assistance Sponsorship program. Additionally, 1,190 refugees were admitted through

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the Blended Visa Officer Referred program and identified to receive up to six months of income support and nine privately sponsored LGBTQ+ refugees, who arrived via a cost-sharing arrangement with Rainbow Refugee society, received up to three months of income support.


Through the Settlement Program, IRCC continued to ensure that targeted settlement supports for vulnerable populations, including women and refugees, remain a priority area.

Through the Settlement Program, some organizations received funding to deliver place-based violence prevention programming as well as training and capacity building for service-providing organizations in the area of violence prevention and awareness.

Budget 2018 allocated $31.8 million over three years for IRCC to launch a pilot project to support programming for newcomer women who are also members of visible minority groups, in an effort to remove potential barriers to employment.

IRCC offers specialized settlement supports to LGBTQ+ immigrants, including refugees upon arrival in Canada.


Through its humanitarian and compassionate program, IRCC granted permanent resident status based on humanitarian and compassionate considerations to 3,460 persons, including women and girls, in FY 2017/18.

Canada eliminated the condition that applied to some sponsored spouses and partners to live with their sponsor for two years to maintain their permanent resident status.

IRCC continued to uphold the 2015 regulatory amendment that increased the minimum age of a recognized spouse from 16 to 18 in all permanent and temporary immigration programs, to help address concerns of early and forced marriages and to protect vulnerable children from being sponsored as spouses.

Results and Progress: I- Refugee Program:

While gender-specific factors are considered when they are brought forward in Pre-Removal Risk Assessment determination cases, data was not collected in FY 2017/18 pertaining to specific factors in applications, gender-specific or otherwise.

1 monitoring and analysis report with emphasis on vulnerable populations was produced in FY 2017/18. Reports of violence against members of the LGBTQ+ community in Chechnya had resulted in a change of country conditions within the Chechen Republic of Russia. As a result, individuals from Russia were exempted from the one-year bar on accessing a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment, as they could have faced a situation of risk that may warrant an additional assessment.

In 2017, Canada resettled 415 vulnerable refugees through the Women at Risk program, 305 (73%) of whom were women and girls.

In 2017, Canada resettled 26,980 refugees, 48% of whom were women and girls; given the sheer size of the global refugee crisis, Canada relied

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primarily on the UN Refugee Agency to identify the most vulnerable refugees in need of resettlement, including women and girls.

The Budget 2018 commitment ($20.3 million over five years) to welcome an additional 1,000 refugee women and girls in need of resettlement, beginning FY 2018/19 was in addition to planned refugee resettlement targets and increased resettlement through the Women at Risk program.

From the beginning of the Survivors of Daesh initiative in October 2017 to April 29, 2018, Canada resettled 1,322 people, 55% of whom were women and girls.

In 2017-18 fiscal year, IRCC assisted resettlement of 4,430 women and girls through its Resettlement Assistance Program and Joint Assistance Sponsorship program.


In 2017-18, the department invested over $730 million to support the settlement needs of newcomers outside of Quebec, more than half of whom are women. Targeted services and resources included women-only language classes and conversation circles. As targeted services are often embedded in broader programming offerings, the percentage of funding allocated to settlement services specific for women was not available.

In 2016, the department developed a multilingual violence prevention resource card available in (English, French, Arabic, Punjabi, Mandarin, Spanish, and Tagalog), and IRCC was exploring some additional languages. The information on this card directs clients to a variety of resources that can be accessed in most places throughout Canada. More than 43,000 cards have been disseminated to service providers and an additional 143,000 are to be disseminated in 2018-19.

The 2017 Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration began incorporating sex-disaggregated data on client access of the Settlement Program.

o In 2016, of the 410,000 clients who accessed at least one Settlement Program service in Canada (outside of Quebec), 57% were women.

o Women used every type of settlement service at a higher rate than men, particularly language training (66% women).

There are three service-provider organizations delivering Gender Based Violence programming through the GBV Strategy, and two Contribution Agreements were signed in early FY 2018/19.


In 2017, nearly 3,300 women and girls applied to stay in Canada based on humanitarian and compassionate considerations, and just over 1,750 women and girls were approved.

On April 18, 2017, IRCC eliminated the condition that applied to some sponsored spouses and partners to live with their sponsor for two years to maintain their permanent resident status. IRCC has continued to uphold this regulatory repeal to support the government's commitment to gender equality and combatting gender violence and addressing concerns that the condition may potentially have resulted in vulnerable spouses staying in abusive relationships for fear of losing their status in Canada.

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2. ACCOUNTABILITY

Context: The department’s second priority in integrating the Action Plan into its activities is accountability, where IRCC will continue to enhance its contribution at home and within international forums through horizontal coordination, participation at regular meetings with domestic and international partners (e.g. other governments, international organizations, and non-governmental organizations), and by providing input and feedback to national and international processes.

OBJECTIVES 2.1 An IRCC Action Plan focal point is established

Activities: 2.1.1 Develop a focal point within the department to coordinate IRCC’s support

of the Action Plan and gender considerations in the area of women, peace and security.

Indicators: 2.1.1 The existence of a focal point within the department that would

coordinate IRCC’s support of the Action Plan.


IRCC appointed a departmental focal point to coordinate IRCC’s support of the Action Plan.


Appointed a departmental focal point to coordinate IRCC’s support of the Action Plan.

Results and Progress: Joining the renewed Action Plan 2017-22 as a supporting partner, IRCC identified the Refugee Affairs Branch as the departmental focal point to coordinate IRCC’s support of the Action Plan and gender considerations in the area of WPS. Activities of the focal point included providing input and feedback from a WPS perspective, to various reports produced or reviewed by the department.

2.2 IRCC domestic contribution on the Action Plan is enhanced

Activities: 2.2.1 Solicit support and engagement within the department on implementation

of GBA+ in relation to the Action Plan. 2.2.2 Participate in annual GBA+ surveys by SWC to report on the application of

GBA+ within the department’s programs that are of relevance to the Action Plan.

2.2.3 * In the context of the requirement to undertake GBA+ in Memoranda to Cabinet, provide analysis that considers and supports the Action Plan when applicable.

2.2.4 *Participate in the Action Plan Advisory Group meetings. Indicators: 2.2.1 Number of GBA+ surveys by SWC that were filled out by IRCC with specific

consideration of the Action Plan. 2.2.2 Regular reporting on the Action Plan.

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IRCC participated in the annual GBA+ Survey by SWC and highlighted the Action Plan

IRCC participated in the first Advisory Group on the Action Plan

IRCC provided input into the annual progress report on the implementation of the Action Plan


IRCC’s Gender and Strategic Priorities Unit undertook a number of activities to support and engage GBA+ within the department, including offering a number of activities during the 2017-18 GBA+ Awareness Week.

The Gender and Strategic Priorities Unit also regularly met with IRCC branches to provide advice on addressing GBA+ in Cabinet proposals.

IRCC participated in the annual GBA+ Survey by SWC; in the input provided in FY 2017/18, IRCC highlighted the Action Plan as an initiative to which GBA+ could be applied.

IRCC identified the following initiatives in the Minister’s mandate letter, to which GBA+ could be applied: Settlement Program; Resettlement Program; Review of Visa Policy Framework; reducing processing times and improving the department’s service delivery and client services, including the asylum system; Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

In March 2018, IRCC participated in the inaugural Advisory Group on the Action Plan bi-annual meeting.

Results and Progress: To report on the application of GBA+ within the department’s programs that are of relevance to the Action Plan, IRCC completed the 2017 SWC GBA+ implementation survey. In its input for FY 2017/18, IRCC highlighted the Action Plan as an initiative to which GBA+ could be applied. The Gender and Strategic Priorities Unit of IRCC did not receive a Memorandum to Cabinet in FY 2017/18 where a consideration of the Action Plan would be applicable. However, the Unit had the capacity to provide the support if required.

2.3 The Action Plan is promoted in international fora

Activities: 2.3.1 Support a gender-based perspective in the development of the Global

Compacts on Refugees and on Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration.

2.3.2 *Strengthen IRCC’s capacity in integrating gender perspectives in the department’s work by providing evidence-base analysis that supports GBA+ assessments on global issues such as human trafficking and forced migration.

2.3.3 *Encourage the inclusion of Action Plan perspectives in IRCC contributions to bilateral engagements and international forums, such as the International Organization for Migration, the UN Refugee Agency, key regional consultations on migration (e.g. the Regional Conference on Migration, the Intergovernmental Consultations on Migration, Asylum and Refugees) and UN committees and sub-committees.

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Indicators: 2.3.1 Number of times gender considerations were included in

negotiation/statements of the Global Compacts on Refugees and on Migration.

2.3.2 Number of IRCC engagements in bilateral and multilateral forums where Action Plan objectives were considered.


IRCC included gender considerations in negotiation/statements of the Global Compacts 61 times through interventions, written submissions for formal and thematic consultations and a Canadian non-paper.2

IRCC engaged in bilateral and multilateral forums where it considered Action Plan objectives. However, the total number of such engagements was not calculated during this reporting period.


Canada advocated for increased refugee protection spaces globally by supporting efforts to develop and adopt a global compact on refugees and by sharing expertise with other countries that may want to adopt Canada’s approach to refugee resettlement.

Canada advocated for the development of a gender-sensitive Refugee Compact that better protects and empowers vulnerable refugees, affirms international legal obligations, and increases international cooperation to better enable comprehensive refugee responses.

Gender equality is also a Canadian priority under the Migration Compact: Enshrining greater protection of human rights, particularly those of women and girls, and greater empowerment of migrant women in national, regional and global responses to migration.

Canada also called for states to implement strengthened, gender-responsive and improved processes for entry at borders, stays, returns, readmission and reintegration.

IRCC integrated gender perspectives in its assessment of projects selected for funding under its Migration Policy Development program, a grants program within IRCC that allows Canada to support research on migration issues, promote the exchange of information among states, gain access to the work of these organizations, and contribute to public discussion in this field.

As a key strategic objective, IRCC advocated for gender-responsive humanitarian action, in line with Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy, through statements, meetings with key UN Refugee Agency officials and other delegations, as well as through informal stakeholder engagement at the 2017 UN Refugee Agency executive committee meeting.

At the Global Forum on Migration and Development Summit (June 2017), Canada co-led with Mexico a discussion on immigrant integration with a focus on women and girls.

2 A non-paper is an informal document, usually without explicit attribution, put forward in closed negotiations

within EU institutions, notably the Council of Ministers, in order to seek agreement on some contentious procedural or policy issue.

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During the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September 2017, IRCC highlighted the importance of empowering and supporting migrant and refugee women and girls, with a focus on Yazidis.

At the Regional Conference on Migration in July 2017, IRCC delivered messages about gender-related policies within Canada's refugee, asylum and settlement systems, and the integration of GBA+.

At the Regional Conference on Migration themed "Migrant Women" in November 2017, IRCC underscored Canada's policies and programs focusing on migrant and refugee women, and spoke to Canada's Feminist International Assistance Policy.

Canada also put forward a call to address the needs of vulnerable migrant women in transit countries.

In addition, Canada signed a special declaration endorsed by most Regional Conference on Migration countries highlighting the need to address gender dimensions in both global compacts.

Results and Progress: Women and girls experience displacement and migration differently than men and boys, and it is important to respond to these gendered dimensions of migration and better empower women and girls. Doing so is not only a human rights imperative but also an approach that can yield significant developmental and societal gains. Through ongoing Government of Canada engagements with the UN Refugee Agency and other international forums, Canada recognized the unique needs of women and girls in humanitarian crises with a view to ensuring a better understanding and an enhanced response to these specific needs. With this policy, Canada encouraged more gender-responsive humanitarian action and strongly promotes the use of gender- and age-disaggregated data by partners, as well as a more robust results-based management framework. During the reporting period, IRCC included gender considerations in negotiation/statements of the Global Compacts 61 times through interventions, written submissions for formal and thematic consultations and a Canadian non-paper. IRCC regularly included gender considerations in Canada's statements and engagement with the International Organization for Migration, such as its International Dialogue on Migration (April and July 2017), the International Organization for Migration Council (December 2017), and the International Organization for Migration-Canada Bilateral Meeting (February 2018). The 2017-18 Migration Policy Development Program fund supported the Resettlement Deployment Scheme project in partnership with the International Catholic Migration Commission. This program provided an opportunity to create primary data on whether humanitarian programs that apply gender-based approaches are more effective in meeting the specific needs of vulnerable women and girls. The funding will allow for three experts in SGBV to be deployed to the UN Refugee Agency operations in Uganda, Ethiopia and Costa Rica, all countries where the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework is being applied, for six-month assignments. IRCC’s Migration Policy Development Program also supported a partnership with Talent Beyond Boundaries for the Economic Mobility Pathway Project, which

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evaluates the barriers refugees face in accessing a durable solution through Canada’s existing economic migration pathways. The project aims to facilitate the creation of a gender-balanced pool of francophone and anglophone refugees who have strong economic settlement potential, with a view to expanding the global pool of third-country solutions through complementary pathways.

3. TRAINING AND EDUCATION

Context: The department’s third priority in integrating the Action Plan into its activities is training and education, where IRCC promotes GBA+ awareness and training to all of its staff, including IRCC leaders and decision-makers working at home and abroad.

OBJECTIVES

3.1 IRCC employees are aware of GBA+, gender-based and Action Plan considerations

Activities: 3.1.1 Encourage all IRCC staff and senior management to complete the Status of

Women Canada’s GBA+ online introduction course, which provides a foundational understanding of applying gender and identity considerations to policies and programs.

3.1.2 Continue to provide the training sessions on “gender and decision-making” and on “vulnerable persons” as part of specific staff training before they go overseas to missions abroad to process the refugee caseload.

3.1.3 *Enhance the training sessions to support the Action Plan by expanding it to include other IRCC staff operating in Canada and abroad.

3.1.4 Continue to provide review of administrative measures to address forced marriage cases; of excluded relationships – proxy, telephone, fax, internet or similar marriage forms; and of change to the minimum age of eligibility of spouses and partners as part of family class/family member training before staff go overseas to missions abroad (e.g. OB599, OB613, OB605 respectively).

3.1.5* Invite Global Affairs Canada and other Action Plan partners to present their activities to IRCC governance tables (e.g., Policy Committee Business Operations Committee, and Departmental Management Committee).

Indicators: 3.1.1 Number of courses or training sessions given with a module on gender and

decision-making (e.g. Foreign Service Development Program training, Locally Engaged Officers training, refugee training, etc.).

3.1.2 Number of staff who complete the Status of Women Canada’s GBA+ online introduction course.

3.1.3 Number of staff (overseas Locally Engaged Staff or other IRCC) who participated in the “gender and decision-making” training session.

3.1.4 Number of times Global Affairs Canada has presented its activities to IRCC governance tables (e.g. Policy Committee, Business Operations Committee, and Departmental Management Committee).


2 courses/training sessions were given with a module on gender and decision making: the Foreign Service Development Program and

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Refugee training.

279 IRCC staff completed the GBA+ online introduction course

40 staff (overseas locally engaged staff) participated in the “gender and decision-making” training session.


In September 2017, IRCC promoted GBA+ as a learning activity in IRCC’s Generic Learning Roadmap; the learning activity was included in the Learning Roadmap for IRCC executives and was a recommended learning activity for all IRCC supervisors and managers.

Foreign service officers were trained on GBA+ during their Immigration and Refugee Protection Act training prior to going on assignment overseas.

The GBA+ online course was mandatory for executives in certain policy branches at IRCC: Strategic Policy and Planning Branch, Immigration Branch, Settlement and Integration Policy Branch, and Research and Evaluation Branch.

o The course was recommended for executives and middle managers of all policy branches, as advised by their respective directors general.

With the GBA+ requirements of Memoranda to Cabinet and Treasury Board submissions, IRCC’s GBA+ Unit recommended that the Cabinet Affairs Unit and Regulatory Affairs Unit undertake the GBA+ online course.

GBA+ training was also provided during the Foreign Service refresher course and the foreign assignment course. Once overseas, officers then acquired additional tools and mission-specific training to ensure an understanding of the customs, culture and norms for marriages and relationships in the cases they process, which are inclusive of gender and diversity considerations.

Results and Progress: GBA+ was a recommended learning activity for all IRCC supervisors and managers. It was included in IRCC’s Generic Learning Roadmap, which was promoted in September 2017. It was also included in the Learning Roadmap for IRCC Executives. During the reporting period, 279 IRCC staff completed the GBA+ online course. Foreign service officers were trained on GBA+ during their Immigration and Refugee Protection Act training prior to going on assignment overseas. This included specific regulations in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations and operational guidance that pertain specifically to family members and spousal relationships, including the genuineness of marriage or common-law relationships, and prevention of polygamous relationships or marriages by proxy. For the refugee processing training for officers, gender-specific issues were also examined, such as eligibility for “urgent need of protection” and assessment for “vulnerability” as defined in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. Officers also gained awareness and information on vulnerability stemming from LGBTQ+/sexual orientation, women’s rights activism, and GBV (e.g. honour killings, forced abortion, genital mutilation). Two courses/training sessions were given with a module on gender and decision-making: the Foreign Service Development Program and Refugee

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training. 40 staff (overseas locally engaged staff) participated in the “gender and decision-making” training session. The Refugee Affairs Branch of IRCC also provided Foreign Service Officers with guidance and information during the refugee course where notions such as but not limited to, “woman at risk,” “vulnerable cases,” “women’s-rights activists”, as well as LGBTQ+/sexual orientation potential issues were addressed. Due to the Action Plan being launched in late 2017, IRCC did not invite Global Affairs Canada to present their activities to IRCC governance tables such as Policy Committee, Business Operations Committee, and Departmental Management Committee. However, at the time of reporting, IRCC has organized one GAC presentation at Policy Committee for early FY 2018/19.

immigration, refugees and citizenship canada progress … · 2018. 10. 15. · 4 within permanent...

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