Many thanks to Safia, Gul e Rana, and all the women and girls who make the Thorncliffe Wellness Cafe a welcoming and safe space for friends and neighbours to gather and build community. Thanks also to Adeena Niazi and the Afghan Women’s Organization for their support.
Supporting community women’s organizations is crucial to creating safe and constructive environments for new women in Canada. Our government’s investment of $100 million over five years in the Women’s Program will increase the sector’s capacity to support women in their communities, as well as provide funding for organizations focused on vulnerable women, including newcomers.
In addition, a top priority of our government is helping newcomer women who are also visible minorities overcome the barriers to finding and keeping good jobs. These obstacles include language challenges, lack of Canadian experience, a lack of social networks, and, in some cases, discrimination. In 2018, we provided $31.8 million over three years to pilot new support programming that is tackling these barriers.