This is a joint news release between the Government of Canada and the Government of Yukon.
Minister for Women and Gender Equality Marci Ien and Minister responsible for the Women and Gender Equity Directorate Jeanie McLean met with the Yukon’s equity-seeking organizations today to discuss progress made so far on the Yukon’s implementation of the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence and identify emerging priorities.
Participants at the meeting included representatives from the Women’s Coalition, Queer Yukon Society, Skookum Jim Friendship Centre and Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition as well as other government representatives.
The governments of Canada and Yukon entered into an agreement under the National Action Plan last October. Under the agreement, the Government of Canada is investing close to $16.4 million dollars over four years and the Government of Yukon is cost-matching this amount.
So far, the Government of Yukon has awarded 20 community projects more than $2.2 million in the 2023–24 and 2024–25 fiscal years through the victim support and prevention projects stream. These projects include a variety of promising practices, including youth mentorship, redefining masculinity, enhancing access to culturally relevant, trauma-informed services, expanding safety measures and providing resources for survivors to heal and rebuild resilience. In addition, the Government of Yukon has enhanced funding to transition homes by $1.3 million.
Initiatives are also underway within the Government of Yukon to implement integrated case assessment for cases of high-risk intimate partner violence, enhance services for children and youth who are victims or witness gender-based violence, develop programming for Yukoners involved with the criminal justice system and increase funding to transition homes, among others.
Funding from the National Action Plan is also supporting a sector-wide engagement and program review, led by the Yukon Women’s Coalition. This review is intended to identify gaps and opportunities in programs and services addressing gender-based violence in the territory. The review’s findings are expected in the new year and will inform the Yukon’s implementation of the National Action Plan going forward.
I was honoured to take part in the round-table discussion with Minister Ien and many Yukon organizations working to end gender-based violence. It is always inspiring to meet directly with those involved on the front-line and hearing more about the work underway in our territory under the National Action Plan. By working together, we can create lasting systemic change to address, prevent, and eliminate gender-based violence in the Yukon.
Enhancing support systems, advancing safety, and championing equality for women and gender-diverse individuals are key to addressing gender-based violence in Yukon. Today, alongside Minister McLean, I had the privilege of meeting with incredible organizations that are transforming lives—offering vital support to those impacted. Ending gender-based violence is a shared responsibility. Together, we can create a future where every person in Canada can live with dignity, free from violence and fear.
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Yukon and Canada signed the bilateral agreement under the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence in 2023, totalling $16.4 million from 2023–24 to 2026–27.
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The National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence was released in November 2022. It contains five pillars intended to guide efforts across Canada:
o Pillar one: support for victims, survivors and their families;
o Pillar two: prevention;
o Pillar three: responsive justice system;
o Pillar four: implementing Indigenous-led approaches; and
o Pillar five: social infrastructure and enabling environment
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The funding is intended to address three priorities: increasing prevention efforts; reaching underserved and/or most at-risk populations; and stabilizing the gender-based violence sector. It will support funded organizations to address the intersectional needs of diverse populations, including those experiencing gender-based violence in rural and remote communities.
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Last year in Canada, there were more than 123,000 victims of intimate partner violence reported to police. Between 2022 and 2023, women and girls made up 68 per cent of family violence victims and 78 per cent of intimate partner violence victims. In 2023, the rate of police-reported intimate partner violence in the Yukon was almost four times the national rate.
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Two-thirds of women in Canada who identify as a sexual minority (lesbian, bisexual or women who don’t identify as heterosexual) have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime, while almost 60 per cent of transgender and gender-diverse Canadians have been the victims of violence.
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Since 2021, the Government of Canada has invested $1.14 billion to advance and implement the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence, including $539.3 million over five years to support provinces and territories in their efforts to implement the National Action Plan.
Laura Seeley
Cabinet Communications
867-332-7627
[email protected]
Weronika Murray
Communications, Women and Gender Equity Directorate
867- 667-3030
[email protected]
Angie Rutera
Communications Assistant
Office of the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth
[email protected]