Making Trade More Inclusive: Gender Equality in Trade Policy

Welcome to the ParlAmericas Podcast.

In this episode, we explore how trade policy can advance gender equality and ensure that the benefits and opportunities created by trade are shared more broadly.

We hear from Dr. Judit Fabian, visiting researcher at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa, fellow of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, and founding member of the World Trade Organization Gender Research Hub. Drawing on Canada’s experience, she discusses the use of gender-based analysis, gender chapters and provisions in trade agreements, and the complementary roles of soft law and binding commitments in advancing more inclusive trade.

Her remarks also consider the value of long-term, cross-party policy development and regional cooperation through initiatives such as the Global Trade and Gender Arrangement and the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity. The episode highlights how sustained public policy and parliamentary engagement can help make trade systems more inclusive and responsive to groups that have not benefited equally from trade.

This episode was recorded during the 22nd ParlAmericas Plenary Assembly and 10th Gathering of the Open Parliament Network, titled “Parliamentary Leadership for Shared Prosperity: Advancing Trade, Innovation, and Security in a Changing World,” held in Ottawa, Canada, from May 19 to 22, 2026.