Departmental Plan 2023-2024: Gender-based Analysis Plus

In line with the Government of Canada's commitment to integrate the practice of Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus) into the work of departments and agencies, the reinvigoration of GBA Plus within the School remains one of our strategic priorities.

As such, in order to strengthen the governance of GBA Plus across the School the following steps have been taken:

The Policy and Strategic Relations team has reengaged with Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE) to confirm the designation of a new staff member to fulfill the role of GBA Plus Focal Point (GFP) for the School. This role is responsible for representing the School at the Interdepartmental Committee (IDC) and on related working groups.

As well, the School has created the role of a GBA Plus Champion, who represents the School at the WAGE-operated Champions Network at the senior management level (director/vice president level and higher). Both these roles meet on a quarterly basis to discuss the same issues, as their agendas are complementary, but the GFP analyzes and tackles topics at a more operational level than does the Champion.

The GFP is the School's first point of contact for inquiries about the application of GBA Plus across the organization. The GFP carries out the following functions:

• Research and analysis, development and advice on policy implementation
• Advice to program and project management on the application of GBA Plus tools
• Facilitation of inputs to the government-wide reporting tools in support of the evaluation and monitoring of GBA Plus across federal departments and agencies

The most recent GBA Plus Interdepartmental Committee (IDC) meeting occurred on November 16, 2022. It was designed to allow GFPs to stay apprised of GBA Plus activities and developments across the departments and agencies and to review the work currently underway to deliver on mandate letter commitments to enhance the framing and parameters of GBA Plus, including the GBA Plus expectations related to the 2023 budget process.

The GFP collaborates with the GBA Plus Centre of Expertise, Research, Results and Delivery Branch of WAGE. As part of this collaboration, the GFP is expected from time to time to contribute to the newsletter produced by the GBA Plus Interdepartmental Committee (IDC), engage with the virtual GBA Plus community on GCconnex, and present periodic updates at IDC and working group meetings.

On a daily basis, the GFP promotes application of the GBA Plus step-by-step guide and provides questions and considerations for each step. The GFP also facilitates integration of the complementary Intersectionality job aid produced by WAGE. The guide and the job aid are being incorporated into the internal policy framework on the application of GBA Plus at the School.

The School develops learning products to support the application of GBA Plus by Government of Canada institutions.

The School collects the data necessary to adequately monitor and report on the compliance of its learning products with the School's internal GBA Plus-related policies and processes.

Product owners at the School are entrusted with the duty of care regarding GBA Plus compliance of the projects and services they oversee. Products are screened for GBA Plus prior to their launch.

The GFP provides guidance and advice on the application of GBA Plus analyses and applicable tools to assist with such analyses by product owners.

The School has been working diligently to integrate GBA Plus into its policies and operations, in line with its organizational mandate.

The School has undertaken the following measures to build on its institutional capacity to deliver on the GBA Plus priorities of the government:

• Ongoing advisory services are available to anyone at the School who wishes to verify the compliance of the School's policies, products and initiatives with GBA Plus best practices .
• A suite of internal policy instruments is being revised to incorporate the GBA Plus process and methodology as well as policy guidance developed in in collaboration with WAGE.
• A review of existing internal reporting tools to identify needs and gaps where GBA Plus assurance or attestation should be adopted (e.g., the product or service information form, content-sharing rules, terms and conditions).
• Development of an external-facing policy statement that will serve to confirm the School's continued commitment to GBA Plus.

In 2023-24 the School will continue to focus on the development and delivery of GBA Plus learning products that are aligned with the Government of Canada's evolving policy direction, placing greater emphasis on an intersectional approach and an increased understanding of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) considerations.

The School will continue to collaborate with departments and agencies to enhance the GBA Plus learning curriculum, with the aim of  building the competencies of public servants to provide meaningful and inclusive services to Canadians. Through School events and courses that are focused on equity, diversity and inclusion, public servants will have a greater understanding of the different types of barriers that people face. 

In 2023-24, the School will continue to co-chair two interdepartmental committees with WAGE to advance the GBA Plus curriculum:

1. GBA Plus Learning Advisory Committee: To discuss and identify the learning needs of the federal public service on the topics of GBA Plus and intersectionality
2. GBA Plus Capacity-Building Working Group: To discuss ways of building GBA Plus knowledge and application across the whole of government

Both groups will provide input into the development of a GBA Plus learning plan to support executives, the various functional communities, and all public servants.

In 2023-24, the School will continue to collect and review learner feedback to inform changes to improve learning products. It will also obtain learner and departmental feedback through multiple mechanisms, including:

• learner surveys, questionnaires, and focus groups
• user testing during product development
• pilot offerings prior to launch
• evaluation data from courses and events (both quantitative and qualitative)