A new study from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says that the tri-cities are the worst place in Canada for women in terms of safety and health.
Overall, Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge ranked at 17 out of 26 cities on the list—the study treated the three municipalities as one city—but grabbed bottom marks in both health and personal security for women.
These rankings were based on the CCPA’s Gender Gap Index, modelled after the Global Gender Gap Index.
“Years of effort to remove entrenched economic, cultural and social barriers to women’s progress are not landing the results we all expected by now,” the report reads.
According to the study, the rates at which sexual assault and domestic violence were reported to the Waterloo Regional Police Service were the highest among large cities. In 2017, 1,300 people were reportedly victims of domestic violence, most of whom were women.
Criminal harassment targeting was the highest rate out of all cities studied.
Sexual assaults were reported to police at a rate of 110.3 per 100,000 people.
As for health, the study says that life expectancy for men in the region are just above the national average, while women come in just below at 83.7 years.
The gender gap has also widened considerably when it comes to ranking one’s health, putting Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge at 23rd.
Rates of screening for cervical cancer were also below average, putting the region in 19th place. Altogether, these rankings put health for women in the region in last place.
