:
Good afternoon, everyone. I know we haven't all arrived yet, but since we have quorum, we are going to start.
Welcome to the 37th meeting of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. Today we are continuing our study on improving economic prospects for Canadian girls. Something has been added to our agenda: a vote needs to be held in the House. The bell will begin to ring around 5:15 p.m. I suggest we give each group of witnesses 50 minutes. Does that suit everyone? I see that no one objects.
Nancy Southern, president and chief executive officer of ATCO Group, is joining us by videoconference from Calgary, Alberta.
Good afternoon, Ms. Southern.
Also joining us by videoconference is Elyse Allan, president and chief executive officer of GE Canada. She joins us from Mississauga, Ontario.
Welcome to our committee.
This is how it will go: you each have 10 minutes for your presentation, then we will move into questions.
Ms. Southern, you have the floor.
[English]
You have ten minutes.
:
Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
Perhaps I will save you some of the time that you're losing due to the vote. I don't think I'll take the full ten minutes, and I look forward to the questions.
Members of the committee, it is a great honour for me to be asked to appear before you on the status of women and specifically on improving economic prospects for Canadian girls. I'd like to commend the government and the parliamentary process for addressing such a worthwhile and all-encompassing subject.
I think it is worthy to recall where we are in Canada in terms of benchmarking our progress on this issue against other OECD nations. The statistics say we are relatively successful on employment equality vis-à-vis our peers, and we have improved somewhat in terms of pay equity, albeit perhaps too slowly for many of us. We are doing better than we were, and I believe with the sense of purpose this committee brings, we will continue to improve our ranking in gender equality.
Key to the task of improving public policy on the status of women is our ability to measure our outcomes. Whether it's government, commerce, the judiciary, constabulary, or education, it is critical that we are able to measure fact-based results to make objective decisions and choices regarding our future.
In that vein, my first recommendation to the committee is that we reconsider what information is relevant and important to Canadians. And while I completely understand and agree with the need for efficiency in streamlining the long-form census, I also believe that statistical information is required to determine whether our nation is achieving results from the financial and human implementation of our programs directed toward the disabled, impoverished, gender-biased, and first nations, to name just a pressing few.
No doubt the questions need refinement, but good critical analysis is not possible without the right information. So reinstatement of a modernized census that will provide these data sets is, in my mind, vitally important.
My second recommendation and thought for improving the economic prospects for Canadian girls and women is education. I know that Tracy Redies identified education in an earlier hearing, and I couldn't agree more.
In general and on an equal gender basis, our public school curriculum must continue to innovate and evolve with the dynamic world we live in, and our education system is not keeping up with the geopolitical and economic power shifts that are occurring as we speak.
In order for Canada to retain its position and move up the global competitive scale, education of our most precious resource, our children, is paramount so that our girls and our boys can take advantage of future opportunities.
Included in this upgrading and updating of our curricula should be the way women's and men's roles are portrayed. Just as we have educated the public on the health risks of smoking so the knowledge is ingrained and second nature, so should the systemic stereotypical roles of women be abandoned, and the acknowledgement of women in our society from all walks of life, in all job sectors, should be celebrated. And the way to do this is through our public and private schools, K through 12.
As my third recommendation, I'd like to commend Minister Ambrose's strategic plan and encourage the gender analysis contemplated across all levels of government. We in business, academia, and the judiciary should be motivated to do the same. But in doing so, the analysis needs to be transparent and action should be taken, if warranted, in a meaningful way.
I'm personally very disappointed and disturbed by the case of RCMP Staff Sergeant Donald Ray and the lack of or perceived lack of ability that our government and their agencies have to address gross misconduct. Our inability to take actions that match harmful deeds such as this is a significant setback, not just for women but for our society in general.
This leads me to my final point, and that is that inclusion, empathy, and compassion are fundamental characteristics I believe Canadians aspire to. And I believe the world views these qualities as an important aspect of how we are defined. This country was built on determination, integrity, hard work, courage, and enterprise. Against all odds, we have held a vast nation together. Yes, we have made mistakes, but as evidenced by this committee, we strive to learn from our mistakes and correct them.
We cannot be all things to all people. We cannot tolerate the misuse of the public's trust. Consequences for actions are a fact of life, and laws, regulations, and programs that fail to strive for the highest standards will only serve to harm this great nation. Acceptance of anything less than the very best we can be breeds entitlement and promotes mediocrity.
Having said that, I am a big proponent of the Canadian child tax benefit, but I believe it should be available to those who need it most and on a sliding scale, as was proposed in another hearing earlier. Medium- to low-income households need this benefit, especially single moms. If we could increase the value of this benefit it would solve many budget-pinching and economic hardships faced by these families. It would put the decision-making on how expenditures are made where it belongs: in the household. It would free up money for food, education, shelter, and clothes where it's needed and when.
I am passionate about our country, and I am passionate about providing the very best opportunities for our children, both girls and boys, to ensure a vibrant and sustainable Canada for generations to come.
Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
:
Thank you, Madam Chair.
It is a great pleasure for me to appear before your committee today on a topic that is so important to the future of Canada.
GE has been established in Canada for over a hundred years. In this country we have over 7,000 employees in businesses that include oil and gas, equipment for power generation and transmission, health care, transportation, and lighting. We operate over ten manufacturing facilities. You may know that GE Capital is one of Canada’s largest non-bank financial institutions.
Across Canada we invest heavily in technology development. Here in Canada and around the world, we employ engineers, computer scientists, medical technicians, and many highly skilled workers and trades. When we look at Canada, we see not only its vast natural resources but the skills of its people. We can be proud of our education system, which according to the OECD PISA report—the program for international student assessment—ranks among the best in the world.
But one of my greatest concerns is the looming skills shortage in Canada. We have remarkable opportunities before us as a nation. Canadians are privileged to live in a country with a bounty of resources that the world needs. But our economy and our social fabric is at risk if we cannot educate and train the people here in Canada that industry needs. While immigration will certainly help, it will not solve the skill shortages we will be facing.
So what has to be done? We certainly need to graduate more students with advanced degrees in science, engineering, and applied technology. We need to encourage young people to also consider the skilled trades. One of the easiest ways to do this is staring us in the face. We need to encourage more girls to go into these disciplines as well as to learn skilled trades. Unfortunately, girls are under-represented in science and technology programs in secondary and post-secondary schools. As the committee knows from its previous work, the supply pipeline for university graduates in science and engineering or for technical colleges often begins early in the elementary school, when children are exposed to and form their opinions about mathematics, science, and about people who might work in manufacturing jobs.
According to the report Women In Science and Engineering in Canada, produced by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada in 2010, the odds of a female child enrolled in first grade going on to receive a PhD in the sciences or engineering are approximately one in 286. The odds for a boy are one in 167. Today, in an average-sized Canadian elementary school, only one child will go on to receive that PhD, and it is likely to be a boy. By secondary school, girls report lower levels of confidence in their ability to solve specific mathematical problems, lower levels of their perceived ability to learn mathematics, and higher levels of anxiety in dealing with mathematics. Girls were also less likely to believe that mathematics will be useful for their future employment and education and they were also more likely to report lower levels of interest and enjoyment in mathematics.
Science and engineering disciplines rank near the bottom as a discipline of choice for women as compared to men. While women outnumber men in most non-science disciplines at university, the ratio drops off dramatically for the major science-based disciplines, and it is only above men by 1% for the life sciences. In any technical colleges, the representation of young women learning skills is actually no better.
I would like to make three recommendations on how to address the gender gap specifically in an area I think is very important to our country and our country's future, which is sciences, engineering, and the trades. The first recommendation is to build more partnerships between industry and schools. Industry needs to do more to build partnerships with schools so that girls can better understand how studying science, engineering, and trades will lead to higher-paying jobs. One way of doing this is through collaborative alliances so that girls know about the many ways in which scientific work improves our well-being here in Canada and globally.
For several years now GE has helped to fund Actua, a national science education outreach organization. Their science, engineering, and technology education outreach, programmed for Canadian youth, including their national girls program, has been a terrific association for us and for what they do.
We have seen first-hand the benefits of working with girls at a young age. We know from our own employees’ direct experiences as mentors to these girls that given the opportunity to thrive in a positive, supportive environment, such as what Actua has designed, girls will rise to the challenge.
Few girls actually have the opportunity to meet with female scientists and engineers in industry who demystify their work, make their career choices accessible to girls, and inspire them to stay in school and learn. Actua is making excellent progress in changing this. We strongly recommend that the federal government consider ways to support programs such as those offered by Actua, which will inspire girls to achieve their full potential in science and technology.
We in business, of course, need to show girls what the opportunities are for skilled trades people in our plants, factories, and businesses. GE plants, producing aircraft engine parts, water treatment equipment, and smart grids all right here in Canada, are among the most modern in the world. These facilities have robotics and computerized machinery. They're creating a different environment and skill set from our old-fashioned views of what these industries used to look like.
Why shouldn’t girls consider a career in sciences, engineering, or skilled trades? They need to know what these contemporary opportunities look and feel like, and the opportunities they hold.
Another recommendation is around remote communities. In January 2011 we launched a partnership with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce to focus on Canada’s remote communities through a business lens. As the committee knows, remote communities are on the front line of resource development, but frequently the people living in remote communities cannot participate in this development for want of skills, training, and basic infrastructure.
Through 11 cross-country round tables and an online survey, we heard from over 500 business stakeholders. Issues raised by business operators in remote communities included current and future skills shortages. It was noted that along with a shortage of labour there is also a significant high school drop-out rate. For instance, in Nunavut barely 25% of youth actually graduate high school.
Over the next decade, 400,000 aboriginal Canadians will reach working age. It is imperative to improve graduation rates to help Canada develop a highly skilled home-grown workforce. Special attention must be paid to the graduation rates of girls and also their advancement in science, technology, math, and the trades.
We support the recommendation made by a number of organizations for the federal government funding for first nations schools to be equal to that of provincial funding levels. Mentorships with business where girls can connect with women in science and technology are also beneficial during high school.
Additionally, girls in remote communities who want to pursue post-secondary education must often leave home to do so. This can be costly and stressful, a big disincentive. Supporting community and post-secondary programs that support girls in their transition away from home, including provisions for child care, we believe is well recommended.
In closing, my third recommendation is building a national science strategy that targets science education in the crucial K through 12 years. There is a great deal of skepticism about the usefulness of developing sometimes national strategies for every problem Canada is facing. I am aware that too often strategies are little more than pious hopes, but the current federal science and technology strategy is a very good start. It has useful recommendations on how business and government-funded research institutions can better collaborate to drive innovation in our economy and workforce. Part of the strategy is to create a culture of science and technology in Canada.
As a country we can do more to encourage children, and especially girls, to study science and math in the crucial K through 12 years. The provinces will have a lead role here, but federal support for post-secondary education can also help out. For example, we should improve the linkages between universities and technical schools and high schools.
:
Thank you, Madam Chair.
First of all, I want to thank Nancy and Elyse for joining us this afternoon. It certainly was a very interesting presentation, and one that had lots of information for all of us.
I was especially interested in the four points that Nancy put out first for us to consider. All of them certainly carry a lot of weight. Being a former teacher, I want to say how very much I too support your words on the need for education. The part of education on this matter starts not only in the school system and the education system but starts immediately at home, because we have seen in other studies we've done that sometimes by the time girls get to grades two or three they've already had their minds made up on what they should be and that these other ways of working are not meant for them. They've had their minds already made up for a girl type of job.
I want to say that it's those years of schooling, in the early years, that this kind of education, if it's not already done in the home, has to form some focus on those kinds of teachings. So it is very important. It's not only important for the girls, but it's important for boys and girls as well, because they learn much from what they see and hear from their surroundings in those years.
As you also know, the committee's study is on prospects for Canadian girls with regard to economic prosperity, economic participation, and economic leadership, and what changes can be made by Status of Women Canada in its approach to improving them. But at the same time, we also heard from a witness about the importance of having mentors for girls. Young adults or teenagers may have more of an impact on young girls than mentoring of them by older women. Does any of your experience or work support this idea?
That question is for Nancy.
I think mentorship is a vitally important aspect of developing self-esteem and confidence and also in helping to plan career paths for young women. The problem is, if we talk about what you were expressing, that the early stages of development for young women, for young people, is so critical, and as we've seen in so many studies it's very difficult to break a cycle. If you have an impoverished mother with a relatively low education, then there isn't really a role model for the young girl to aspire to. So I think that the whole aspect of mentoring has to begin very early on. In my mind, it's part of the education process.
I don't think you can remove men or boys from the equation. I struggle very much with that. Many of our businesses are heavily laden with engineers, and while we're seeing enrolment increase substantially for women in engineering programs across the country, the mentality in our own companies, while it's unspoken, is that it is a man's world, and the job is for the boys in that club.
I'm really struggling with how we actually break that. The only thing I can come up with is celebrating at a very early age what women can accomplish and what pride they can take in their accomplishments. And I'm not sure that we really expose our children to those kinds of real-life stories and real-life women, whether they're young, middle, or older. I think we can learn a lot from the heritage of our first nations cultures, where in the matriarchal society oftentimes—I believe Paige said it best—the women set the rules and the men regulated on the rules.
Women need to know that they're strong. They need to know that they have the ability to do whatever they want. They can be carpenters. They can drive big dump trucks. They can be scientists, as Elyse said.
I think this whole thing has to start very early on, but we can't forget that we have to educate the men and the young boys along with this.
Good afternoon. Thank you for this opportunity to speak before the committee about ways to improve the economic prospects of Canadian girls.
My name is Bertha Mo. I am the manager of the counselling program at OCISO, the Ottawa Community Immigration Services Organization.
Canada is a nation of immigrants and refugees. None of us, except our aboriginal brothers and sisters, originated in this land, so the things I'm saying should not be a surprise, except for the fact that in the last 20 years the demographics of immigrants and refugees have changed. Previous to the last 20 years, most immigrants and refugees came from Europe. Some of them spoke French, some of them spoke English, and some of them spoke other languages. But this has changed. Today, most of our immigrants and refugees don't speak either English or French.
For the last 34 years, OCISO has been providing settlement and integration services in Ottawa. Our mission is to support immigrants through the journey of making Canada their home by providing creative and responsive programs that are culturally and linguistically appropriate, by building community through mutual respect and partnerships, and by fostering healthy and inclusive spaces for open dialogue and healing.
In the last fiscal year we served 30,335 people. Our staff and volunteers speak over 50 languages. Specifically, OCISO provides community integration services, meaning job search, social support for immigrant women, youth, and seniors, housing support, legal aid, and refugee sponsorship. One of our major programs is English language training for adults. We also provide clinical counselling for individuals, families, and couples; in particular, we specialize in those who have experienced war trauma and torture. There is support for students, families, and school administrators through our multicultural liaison officer program. We offer economic development, through our well-known career mentoring program. We also provide volunteer opportunities for newcomers, Canadians, and students.
Here are some national demographics for immigrants and refugees. In 2010 we welcomed 280,636 immigrants to Canada, of whom 25,000 were refugees. I'm going to focus now on the special challenges of immigrant and refugee children and youth. First, there are some national concerns.
These young children 18 and under who we welcome to Canada are under enormous pressure to quickly integrate into the new culture; however, we haven't really thought about the supports that they and their families need. These young people have to resume their studies very quickly. They face a different school system, and in many cases they have to learn a new language. Additionally, the adolescents are under peer pressure to fit in while trying to negotiate their identity between two cultures. We all know that youth in general, but particularly immigrants, experience a very difficult transition from school to work.
Immigrants face greater barriers than their Canadian-born counterparts to acquire the skills and training they need to compete in the labour market. In 2006 the unemployment rate of recent immigrants aged 15 to 24 was 18%, compared with 13.8% among their counterparts in the general population. Furthermore, it is noted that immigrant youth in low-income families may feel compelled to get jobs that conflict with school schedules in order to contribute to family income. This situation creates great stress and compromises their academic progress. Many immigrant and refugee youth work part-time or full-time in addition to attending school and drop out at a higher rate. In 2006 in Ottawa, 14% of young adults aged 15 to 24 who did not complete high school were immigrants and refugees.
There are several ways we can help immigrant youth to stay at school and enter the labour market. These include guidance and tutoring at school, parents’ ability to have jobs so their children can continue studying, income support for working-poor families, and access to recreational programs for youth where they can relax and meet Canadians of their own age, so they can actually develop a level of comfort and belonging in Canadian society. Equally important is adequate access to labour market information, training, and employment programs.
I have spent quite a lot of time in Ottawa high schools. One of the things I have noticed is the real lack of guidance counsellors, who are not only supposed to be providing guidance around behavioural issues and academic excellence, but also counselling on what you are going to do after you graduate from high school. If you can imagine how this situation is impacting all Ottawa youth, think about the impact it has on immigrant and refugee youth whose first language is neither English nor French.
I want to talk about a very successful program at OCISO—the immigrant and refugee program for high-risk youth. Approximately 18% of Ottawa’s youth aged 15 to 24 are newcomers. Of this number, two thirds are immigrants. Pre-migration and post-migration, as well as settlement experiences, places enormous stress on families and directly affects the overall health and well-being of immigrant and refugee youth. The ability of these young people to integrate into society is often negatively affected by difficulties such as gaps in education, dislocation, family disruption, limited prospects for employment, poverty, and discrimination in the community. Personal or intergenerational exposure to war and trauma during the pre-migration period results in re-traumatization when immigrant and refugee youth experience racial discrimination, bullying, and sexual harassment upon their arrival in Canada.
Approximately 20% of the counselling program’s individual clients are youth. In total, 20% of all counselling program clients are survivors of torture and war trauma. OCISO's multicultural liaison officers who are working in Ottawa schools report that immigrant and refugee youth experience the highest rate of suspension from school. The school system and school counsellors find they do not have the language, experience, resources, time, or mandate to respond appropriately to the complex needs of immigrant and refugee youth. Consultation with principals, teachers, guidance counsellors, and MLOs confirm the need for the support project for immigrant and refugee youth.
The goal of the support program is to build a protective support network for youth through the schools and service providers by offering a safe space where at-risk newcomer youth can make a healthy transition and integration into Canadian society while increasing their ability to meet their full-time academic potential.
:
I have some notes here.
The program has actually been going for about five years. We have worked with 200 Canadian mentors and matched them with internationally trained immigrants. What we try to do is match sectors and even job descriptions. The mentors share their knowledge of the Canadian workplace, cultures, support network development, and advise on job-search prospects. Over 60% of mentees exit the program with jobs in their field, and another 15% pursue further education toward attaining employment goals.
We actually do a lot of informal mentoring at OCISO. I was talking to one of my colleagues about his Burmese community, and he's been one of the supporters of our group counselling program. I always wondered, because we hear that newcomers definitely are not interested in counselling, whether it is group or individual, and he said, “Listen, you have these incredible university graduates. Look at Renée, she has her master's degree and she's been working five years for you. You have Christy and you have Chris and all these are students who have actually manoeuvred their way through university. They're very successful. They did an internship with you and now they're running your support groups. I want my Karen kids to actually spend those eight to 14 weeks with your interns. They're mentors. We don't see you as doing group counselling. What you're running is a group mentoring program.”
I thought, wow.... Because many of our programs are actually designed for individual groups of refugees and immigrants, we're able to tweak them and provide things we might not have thought of. In fact, the immigrant and refugee youth program on the street is actually called career pathways. Because these are also high-risk kids, we don't want to stigmatize them by saying we're really doing mental health counselling.
Good afternoon. Kwe.
[English]
Wela'lin for inviting the Assembly of First Nations to appear today.
[Witness speaks in her native language]
My name is Ashley Julian. I'm a Mi'kmaq woman from the Indian Brook First Nation community in Nova Scotia. I am here for the Nova Scotia and Newfoundland representative for the national youth council for the Assembly of First Nations.
The Assembly of First Nations is a national political organization representing first nations citizens in Canada. The Assembly of First Nations' role is to advocate for first nations priorities and objectives as mandated by the chiefs.
The Assembly of First Nations National Youth Council was created by a charter under AFN. The role and function of members of the national youth council is to represent first nations youth perspectives in all political, social, economic, cultural, and traditional manners.
I want to begin my presentation today by stating my appreciation for this study the committee has undertaken. Too often, policy development overlooks the early stage of life and focuses on addressing problems once they arise, as opposed to proactively understanding and planning for better outcomes.
I have identified three main areas of focus to improve the economic prosperity of first nations girls: education, employment, and safety and security.
First and foremost, first nations children deserve quality education. Since 1996 there has been a 2% fall in annual increases in Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada programs for first nations, including education. This has not kept up with inflation or population growth. The Assembly of First Nations estimates that there is a $3,800-per-child gap between funding for first nations schools and funding for other schools in Canada.
First nations children, simply by virtue of being born in a first nations communities, are expected to have a lower quality of education than other children in Canada. This is unacceptable. Improving the economic prospects of first nations girls requires fair and equitable funding for first nations schools. In addition, first nations girls have different educational paths than other girls in Canada. Among first nations girls, the most common reasons for dropping out of school are family caregiving responsibilities, whether for their own children or other members of their family, and trouble at home.
In 2006, 20% of first nations women over the age of 15 were lone parents, compared with 8% among other Canadian women. About 12% of teenage first nations girls were parents, compared with 1.3% of other Canadian teenage girls. Early motherhood and caregiving responsibilities can lead to a disruption in education, which leads to higher dropout rates. With support, these girls often re-engage with the education system later in life. Flexible programming and accessible child-care support are needed in first nations communities.
A strong example of promising practices comes from the National Association of Indigenous Institutes of Higher Learning, which emerged in recent years in response to the need for post-secondary programs that would better meet the learning requirements for first nations people and girls. An alternative to provincial colleges and universities, the indigenous institutes of higher learning provide programs from an indigenous perspective, including knowledge of one's identity and language. Many of these institutes are located within first nations communities, thereby improving access for students living in remote areas. They are also located in larger urban centres.
First nations girls need the tools and resources to actively engage in the market economy. But they also need opportunities and support to learn and understand the traditional roles, responsibilities, languages, and cultures of their traditional backgrounds.
Important studies by Chandler and Lalonde have looked at the preventative factor of cultural continuity in reducing suicide among youth. Steps to reinvigorate or actively support cultural learning and transferences increase individual resilience and self-confidence, which leads to economic and social success.
I will now move on to employment.
You are likely familiar with the aboriginal skills and employment training strategy, ASETS. First nations provide employment services as part of ASETS, many of which have specific youth, bridging, and transition support.
A specific example of one of these programs is Caldwell First Nation Employment and Training, located in southern Ontario, which assisted one of our youth clients, Samantha. Samantha credits the Caldwell First Nation Employment and Training Office with helping her through her first real summer job opportunity. This office helped her with her résumé and provided the wage subsidy that created jobs in Point Pelee National Park. Samantha finished university, went back to school, and is now graduating from college. She just landed her dream job. She is heading out to Alberta for a park service ranger job. Again, the Caldwell First Nation Employment and Training Office provided the funds Samantha needed to travel to Edmonton for an interview and support her on her employment journey.
ASETS promotes the importance of helping clients like Samantha in making connections for young girls and young people. Such dedicated support, coupled with mentoring and role modelling, are powerful tools for first nations girls; however, they are not always accessible due to changes in funding.
Finally, I want to note a crucial barrier to the economic prosperity of first nations girls—a lack of safety and security. The incidence of violence and insecurity faced by first nations girls and women is well known in these communities, given your previous study. It is extremely difficult for girls to meet their full potential, economically or otherwise, when they are under such great risk of witnessing or experiencing physical or emotional harm.
As noted in the interim report of this committee's study on violence against aboriginal women, a much greater focus is needed on family violence prevention, anti-bullying, and gang activity reduction.
To conclude, while first nations girls continue to be more disadvantaged than their non-first-nations counterparts, we can look with a real hope to gains that have been achieved in a few short generations. For example, one of our successful statistics around first nations girls and the educational opportunities is the Coady Institute, located at the St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia. It is a great opportunity for young female aboriginal and indigenous girls to attend a post-secondary institution in which they are taught leadership skills and roles and responsibilities.
Education is beginning to result in a real improvement for first nations people, but the rate and pace of change needs to accelerate, as it is simply not acceptable to leave first nations children behind.
Actions that can make a tangible difference in improving the economic prospects of first nations girls include flexible and accessible child care for first nations communities in urban and rural areas; support for mentoring in exchanges of formal economies, career development, indigenous languages, and traditional practices; and greater support for violence prevention, anti-bullying programs, and programs to deal with gang recruitment and activity.
I would like to thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. Wela'lin.
:
Yes, I'm sure I can speak and ask questions for two minutes. Thank you.
Thank you to both of our guests as well.
I'm going to direct my questions to Ms. Mo.
As a side note, I also sit on the citizenship and immigration committee, and I appreciate your comments with regard to the changing landscape of immigrants to Canada, as opposed to 20 years ago.
In my other committee, on all the studies we've done there are key words that always come out: integration and assimilation into Canadian society is key to success of new immigrants.
I think in your own testimony you mentioned it's a significant barrier if someone is unable to speak one of the official languages in Canada—English or French. That correlates with what I hear on my other committee, that it's essential for someone to succeed in Canada, to be able to integrate very quickly, to be able to get a job and give back to Canadian society. I do appreciate your comments on that.
Because this committee's purpose is to see what we can do to advance girls in leadership roles, economic prosperity, and so forth, with regard to the immigrant children your organization has helped, do you see a difference in the success rate in immigrant children by gender, so boys versus girls?