The Terrace Women’s Resource Centre (TWRCS) is receiving $273,570 from the federal government to promote projects around gender equality.
TWRCS is one of three organizations to get a portion of the $844,757 federal investment for projects that improve women’s economic security. Minister of International Development and Minister for Women and Gender Equality Maryam Monsef announced the funding Aug. 29.
“By funding organizations in northern British Columbia that work to eliminate the barriers holding women back, we are ensuring that all Canadians – regardless of gender – have a real and fair chance at success,” says Monsef in a press release.
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With the investment, TWRCS says the organization will use it to increase their collaboration, networking, and partnership development within the community. They will also develop and implement a financial health and sustainability plan in Terrace.
Rosemary Craig, TWRCS executive director, says gender inequalities are particularly urgent in rural remote areas.
“Canada urgently needs to address gender inequities that hold back all people from reaching their full potentials,” Craig says. “Government of Canada support will bolster our services to women. We work towards safe and productive communities through improving the lives of women.”
Women continue to be disproportionately affected by economic insecurity across the country, says the release.
When comparing the median hourly wages of women and men over the age of 15 years working full-time in Canada in 2018, women earned just 88 cents for every dollar earned by men, according to Statistics Canada.
Women are also much more likely to work on a part-time basis, making up 75 per cent of all part-time workers in the 25-54 age bracket. Just over a quarter of those women reported childcare responsibilities as their reason for working part-time.
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Terrace Women’s Resource Centre Society is among the more than 250 women’s organizations and Indigenous organizations serving women across Canada receiving funding under the Government of Canada’s Capacity-building Fund, which was introduced earlier this year to support women and girls.
brittany@terracestandard.com
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