Thank you, Madam Chair.
Good day to the witnesses. Thank you for coming here today. It was fascinating listening to you. We learned a lot about the problems faced by women living outside major urban centres. The experience of living in the regions is quite different.
As Ms. Thomas stated, “non- traditional“ means different things in different communities. It's not necessarily what we here associate with “non-traditional“, but these considerations can be important for women. I recall that when I travelled to Iqaluit in Nunavut, I noticed that all positions were held by White men from the South. All jobs, whether in the hotel or restaurant industry or in some other field, were, for the most part, held by non-aboriginal men who had very lucrative contracts. I wondered why these jobs were not occupied by women, given that in Iqaluit, many women are out of work and do not have the opportunity to develop these types of skills.
Since you work with Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, I was also wondering if you discuss the various situations that exist in different communities to ensure that the programs truly meet the needs of the women that you are targeting.
I would also like to know if, in your opinion, it would be important to establish more long-term funding—since you did talk about funding—instead of resorting to project-based funding. Project-based funding does not necessarily target the same people as more long-term funding.
Ms. Thomas, Ms. Phaneuf and Ms. Calder, I'd like to get your opinion on this subject.