Today, Charmaine Williams, Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity, released the following statement:
“On March 8 each year, Ontario joins communities around the world to celebrate International Women’s Day. From frontline workers to educators, executives to innovators, women play a critical role in building Ontario’s economy. Today we recognize these contributions and highlight the actions we are taking to remove barriers and create better opportunities for women and girls.
The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is “Invest in women: Accelerate progress.” The Government of Ontario is making historic investments supporting more women to participate in the economy and excel in their careers, in their communities, and in life. This includes:
- Expanding the Women’s Economic Security and the Investing in Women’s Futures programs to equip more women with the skills, knowledge and experience to find a job or start a business and increase their financial independence.
- Modernizing the school curriculum to increase exposure to STEM, skilled trades, and apprenticeship pathways to help ensure more girls and young women grow up considering and preparing for in-demand, fulfilling and well-paying careers, including sectors where women are traditionally under-represented.
- Investing more than $1 billion into the Skilled Trades Strategy, which includes a range of initiatives that help more women and girls build a passion for the trades early in life.
- Budget 2023 invests in programs to equip entrepreneurs with the tools and training needed to succeed in today’s digital economy. The $10 million new Digitalization Competence Centre provides training and support to small businesses looking to leverage emerging technologies and a provincewide network of 17 Regional Innovation Centres, 47 Small Business Enterprise Centres and programs like Futurpreneur Canada support even more women to create jobs for themselves, and for their communities, as entrepreneurs and as small business owners.
By working together with communities, businesses, and the non-profit sector, we will continue to improve opportunities for women, empower them to pursue their dreams and help build a stronger Ontario.
This International Women’s Day, I encourage everyone to celebrate the outstanding contributions of women in our province and to continue advocating for gender equity in all aspects of life in Ontario.
Because when women succeed, Ontario succeeds.”
