The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 2023 Spring Reports of the Auditor General of Canada to the Parliament of Canada, pursuant to the Auditor General Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. A-17,sbs. 7(5).

Senator Gold: I will certainly make inquiries, senator, but as I tried to answer, the fact is — as the Auditor General found — the data has not yet been fully collected or analyzed, and so the government is committed to doing that. It will just take time for that. I’ll do my best to get at least a progress report such that we know that we’re heading in the right direction, which I firmly believe we are.

Hon. Marilou McPhedran: Senator Gold, yesterday, the Auditor General of Canada released a report and noted that Global Affairs Canada was unable to show how the approximately $3.5 billion in bilateral development assistance that is prioritized each year for low- and middle-income countries actually improved outcomes for women and girls. While not arguing against the government’s Feminist International Assistance Policy, the Auditor General did identify serious reporting and accountability failures in monitoring the policy objectives.

Research conclusively shows that local women leaders are crucial multipliers in social, economic and democratic development, because women typically invest higher in their incomes and energy for their children and families, and because women never give up.

Investing in women’s empowerment is essential to reducing poverty, ending hunger, promoting democracy and achieving the global commitments of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Sadly, the Auditor General’s report finds that Global Affairs Canada missed an opportunity to collect evidence-based data to demonstrate the value of Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy and galvanize progress to reach these crucial global goals.

Senator Gold, what is the government doing to rectify these gaps in effectiveness at Global Affairs?

Senator McPhedran: Senator Gold, there are very specific points raised in the Auditor General’s report. May I ask explicitly, please, as part of my question, if the answers to those concerns would be brought back to us with a specific focus on the empowerment of women and girls and the actual outcomes in bettering their lives?