Law360 Canada (August 31, 2026, 3:49 PM EDT) -- A task force combatting gender-based violence in Newfoundland and Labrador is developing an engagement plan involving the “diverse perspectives” of various stakeholders, including survivors, newcomers, youth, 2SLGBTQIA+ people and those with “lived experience.”

According to an Aug. 31 news release, the province’s Task Force to End Gender-Based Violence met in the capital of St. John’s last week to discuss the plan, which will also take into account the experiences of Indigenous communities, residents in rural and remote areas, those with disabilities, racialized people and “workers at risk of gender-based violence.”

Minister of Women and Gender Equality Lela Evans said the eradication of gender-based violence “requires collaboration, listening and action.”

“This meeting provided an important opportunity for the task force to advance plans for meaningful engagement with survivors, communities and partners throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, while also reviewing progress on initiatives that strengthen prevention, support and accountability,” said Evans in a statement. “Together, we are building a more inclusive and coordinated response to gender-based violence.”

The task force is made up of 12 members — six from outside government and six representing various interested government bodies. They are expected to deliver their first public report this coming fall.

Back in May, Newfoundland and Labrador’s government formally declared gender-based violence an epidemic in the province. With that, the task force was established.

“The establishment of a [task force] brings together individuals with lived experience, Indigenous representatives, frontline service providers and other key community partners,” states a news release from the time. “Central to the work of the task force will be ensuring that the voices of survivors and those directly impacted by violence are not only heard but meaningfully included in decision-making processes.”

The establishment of the task force is just the latest move Newfoundland and Labrador has made in battling gender-based violence in the province.

In January 2025, it formed a ministerial committee to engage with communities in a bid to tackle gender-based violence.

And in December 2023, the province signed on to the federal government’s National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence — a 10-year initiative where participating provinces and territories receive funding to help implement the plan in their respective jurisdictions.

In exchange for signing on to the plan, the province received almost $13.6 million over four years.

Ottawa launched the action plan in 2022.

Last month, the federal government announced it would be investing $607.4 million in the next phase of the plan. The new funding will begin in 2027-28 and will be distributed to signatories over a four-year period.

The national action plan has a five-pillar mandate: supporting victims, responsiveness of the justice system, using Indigenous-led approaches, creating social infrastructure and enabling environments, and advancing prevention.

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