The Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA) is planning to hold a national women’s roundtable/think tank on the Canada Social Transfer (CST) in the coming weeks.

The focus of this roundtable will be the following: “In order to fulfill Canada’s international human rights commitments to women, what role, if any, should the federal government play in the development and implementation of social policy”? This question arises in the midst of increasing public interest in the CST as a social policy tool. As you may know, the federal House of Commons Committee on Human Resources, Skill Development, Social Development and Persons with Disabilities had planned to hold pan-Canadian hearings as soon as this Fall. While these hearings have not yet been scheduled, FAFIA recognizes the value of preparing a feminist position on this question.

In addition, the Canadian Council on Social Development is planning to mount a national campaign regarding the renewal of the Canada Social Transfer so that it adequately meets the needs of all Canadians across the country (for details, see http://www.ccsd.ca/pr/2004/social_transfer/st.htm [1]).

FAFIA believes that deliberations on the CST, both inside and outside of government, must be infused with feminist thought. This is particularly true given the potentially critical role that this federal fiscal mechanism could, and sometimes does, play in supporting social infrastructure on which women heavily rely, such as legal aid, social assistance, and post-secondary education. We plan to immediately share the results of this roundtable with the federal House of Commons Committee on Human Resources, and other policy makers, as well as relevant civil society actors.

In January 2003, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) noted that Canada must endeavour to establish fiscal arrangements between the federal government and provinces/territories so that women will not be ‘negatively affected in a disproportionate way in different parts of the country[1]’.Clearly, modifications to the Canada Social Transfer so that all governments in Canada can fully honour their human rights commitments to women may be one way to address this recommendation.

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[1] Report of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, 28th Session, January 13-31st 2003: Paragraph 352. http://www.fafia-afai.org/images/pdf/ReportofUNCEDAWcomm0103e.pdf [1]