Justin Trudeau opens Women Deliver conference in Vancouver
Canada

Justin Trudeau opens Women Deliver conference in Vancouver

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Vancouver Monday afternoon to help kick off the official opening of the Women Deliver 2019 global conference. 

The four-day summit is described as "the world's largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights, and well-being of girls and women."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Vancouver Monday afternoon to help kick off the official opening of the Women Deliver 2019 global conference. 

The four-day summit is described as "the world's largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights, and well-being of girls and women."

Trudeau's wife, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, recently named an "influencer" by Women Deliver, will also be speaking at the conference. 

The list of international speakers also includes:

Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Tarana Burke, #metoo founder.
Julia Gillard, former Australian prime minister.
Wannek Horn-Miller, Canadian Indigenous Olympian.
Heather Jarvis, SlutWalk Toronto co-founder.
Erica Johnson, CBC investigative journalist.
Marie Villeneuve, Vancouver Radio Canada host. 

The conference is expected to draw 7,000 delegates from 160 countries to the Vancouver Convention Centre West.

On Sunday, Canada's gender equity minister, Maryam Monsef, made a pre-conference announcement of $300 million to kickstart a new platform that aims to change the way the federal government finances women's organizations in Canada and abroad.

The conference first started in 2007 with a focus on addressing high rates of maternal mortality worldwide.