Diversity on boards grows as 90% of companies report women on boards, shows latest CSA review
Participating Canadian securities regulators have published the 10th annual review on disclosures about women’s representation in board and executive positions.
This report, based on corporate governance disclosures from 574 non-venture issuers, highlights advancements and ongoing challenges for gender diversity in corporate leadership.
The securities regulatory authorities in Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan collaborated to compile and release this data.
Findings show that women held 29 percent of board seats this year, an increase from 27 percent last year and 11 percent in the report’s first year.
The review also found that majority of issuers (90 percent) now have at least one woman on their board—up from 89 percent last year and 49 percent a decade ago.
Additionally, 72 percent of issuers have at least one woman in an executive officer role, up slightly from 71 percent last year and 60 percent in the initial year. However, the proportion of board vacancies filled by women declined from 43 percent last year to 37 percent this year.
Stan Magidson, CSA chair and chair and CEO of the Alberta Securities Commission, highlighted the decade-long progress, stating, “We have seen an increase in representation of women on boards and in executive positions over the last 10 years.”
He added that investors value diversity disclosure, noting that the CSA aims to develop a harmonized national framework expanding beyond women’s representation.
After a decade of consecutive reporting, this will likely be the final review under the current disclosure standards.
The CSA is considering updates to diversity-related disclosure requirements and recently sought public input on proposed amendments to Form 58-101F1 Corporate Governance Disclosure of NI 58-101 and potential changes to National Policy 58-201 Corporate Governance Guidelines.
Through these efforts, the CSA aims to develop a harmonized, national framework for diversity disclosure, incorporating feedback from the April 2023 public consultation.
The underlying data for this year’s report, including data from 113 additional non-venture issuers not in last year’s sample, is now publicly available.
