June 23, 2026 – Panama City, Panama – Global Affairs Canada

Today, the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs announced with the Honourable Rechie Valdez, Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Secretary of State (Small Business and Tourism), Canada’s ratification of the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women (the Belém do Pará Convention).

The convention, originally adopted by the OAS member states in 1994, is an historic and groundbreaking treaty. It has played a key role in advancing women’s rights by providing a comprehensive framework for states parties to the convention to prevent, address, and eradicate violence against women—one of the most pervasive and deeply rooted human rights violations and abuses of our time.

For more than three decades, the convention has guided legislative, policy and institutional reforms across the hemisphere. It reinforces the recognition that violence against women is a violation of human rights and a barrier to the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in society. The OAS Inter-American Commission of Women supports states parties in meeting their obligations under the convention. 

This ratification is a result of close consultations between the Government of Canada and provincial and territorial governments, and it will enhance collaboration between governments, civil society organizations, Indigenous Peoples, and international partners to address root causes of violence against women and gender-diverse persons and methods to improve prevention and response including through restorative justice.

This milestone will bring us closer to building a safer and more equitable Canada—and world—for everyone, including women, girls and gender-diverse persons.