Minister Valdez announces $607.4 million to advance the next phase of the National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence

MONCTON, NB, July 16, 2026 /CNW/ - Everyone has a right to live free from violence. Yet, gender-based violence continues to have devastating impacts on individuals, families and communities across Canada. Meaningful progress requires sustained action, strong partnerships, and continued investments in prevention and supports for victims, survivors, and their families.

Today, while Federal-Provincial-Territorial (FPT) Ministers Responsible for the Status of Women gathered in New Brunswick, the co-chairs, the Honourable Rechie Valdez, Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State (Small Business and Tourism), and the Honourable Lyne Chantal Boudreau, Minister responsible for Women and Gender Equity for the Government of New Brunswick, as well as Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Member of Parliament for Moncton--Dieppe, announced $607.4 million over four years, beginning in 2027-28, to continue the implementation of the National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence.

The National Action Plan to End Gender Based Violence is a 10-year plan, launched in 2022, that brings together federal, provincial, and territorial governments working towards a Canada free from gender-based violence.

This investment will support the renewal of bilateral agreements with provinces and territories under the National Action Plan, ensuring continued coordinated action to prevent gender-based violence, strengthen services and supports for victims and survivors, advance community-led initiatives, and build safer communities across Canada.

This builds on the initial investment of $539.3 million over five years, starting in 2022-23, to support the provinces and territories in their efforts to implement the National Action Plan. The current bilateral agreements have already led to significant progress in strengthening services, expanding prevention initiatives, and improving support for victims and survivors. In 2024–2025 alone, more than one million people accessed support services, and over 27,400 prevention resources were delivered including education, awareness and early intervention initiatives aimed at stopping violence before it occurs.

Minister Valdez also announced $31 million over five years, with $6.2 million ongoing, to renew federal funding for provincial and territorial crisis hotlines. This investment will help crisis hotline providers sustain and enhance trauma-informed services, ensuring that people experiencing gender-based violence can access timely support whenever they need it.

Ending gender-based violence requires action across all levels of government, in partnership with communities, organizations and individuals across Canada. The continuation of the National Action Plan is made possible through close collaboration between federal, provincial and territorial governments, working in close partnership with victims and survivors, Indigenous partners, direct service providers, experts, advocates, municipalities, the private sector and researchers. 

Quotes

"Every person deserves to live free from violence. That's why we're renewing bilateral agreements with provinces and territories to ensure victims, survivors, and their families can continue to access the services they rely on every day. Together, we're strengthening supports, helping communities respond, and building a safer Canada for everyone." The Honourable Rechie Valdez, Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State (Small Business and Tourism)

"Together, our governments are committed to making the invisible visible, to ensuring that every person, family, and community has access to essential resources so that we can live in a country free from gender-based violence. New Brunswick, in collaboration with its Indigenous, federal, provincial, and territorial partners, is proud to reaffirm its commitment to creating a safer and more equitable society for all Canadians." The Honourable Lyne Chantal Boudreau, Minister responsible for Women and Gender Equity for the Government of New Brunswick

Quick facts

• The 10-year National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence is a commitment of federal, provincial, and territorial governments to work together towards a Canada free of gender-based violence.
• Every 48 hours in Canada, a woman or girl is killed because of gender-based violence.
• 42% of women who were killed in 2024 were killed by their spouse or partner, up from 32% in 2023.
• Between 2018 to 2024, police-reported intimate partner violence increased by 14%. In 2024, women and girls accounted for 78% of victims of intimate partner violence.

Associated links

• Backgrounder – National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence
• Backgrounder – Crisis hotlines
• The National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence
• Results under the National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence

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SOURCE Women and Gender Equality Canada

Contacts: Ruth Mekonnen, Acting Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State (Small Business and Tourism), 819-360-0557, [email protected]; Media Relations, Women and Gender Equality Canada,  819-420-6530, [email protected]