The Accord and Codes of Good Practice

The Accord

The Accord between the Government of Canada and the Voluntary Sector was developed in 2001 as part of the Government's commitment to formalize the working relationship between the Government of Canada and the Voluntary Sector. The Accord was developed by the Joint Accord Table, one of seven Tables created during the first phase of the Voluntary Sector Initiative.

The purpose of the Accord was to clearly define the values, principles, and commitments to action that the Voluntary Sector and the Government of Canada will adhere to in any of their working relationships. The existence of the document allows for more open, transparent, consistent, and collaborative relationships, and enables both parties to better serve Canadians.

More information about the history of the Accord is available on the Voluntary Sector Initiative website.

The Codes of Good Practice on Funding and Policy Dialogue

The Codes of Good Practice on Funding and Policy Dialogue were developed in October 2002, in response to the Accord's provision that the Voluntary Sector and the Government must develop "Codes or standards of good practice to help guide interactions between government departments and voluntary sector organizations on the aspects of the relationship such as policy dialogue, funding, and other issues as identified;..." (An Accord Between the Government of Canada and the Voluntary Sector, page 10).

Each Code of Good Practice focuses on making good practices common practice throughout the Government and the Voluntary Sector. They are meant to evolve, and require review, analysis, evaluation and reporting on their use as a tool in meeting the Accord's goals.

More information about the Codes of Good Practice on Funding and Policy Dialogue is available on the Voluntary Sector Initiative website .

Using the Accord and Codes of Good Practice

One of the key aspects of the Accord is a commitment to monitoring and reporting on the implementation and use of the Accord and Codes of Good Practice in both the Government of Canada, and in the Voluntary Sector.

The Joint Steering Committee, which was developed to help coordinate and oversee the work of the Voluntary Sector Initiative, has published several reports on the implementation of the Accord and Codes. To see a list of these reports, and to obtain copies of them, please visit the Voluntary Sector Initiative website.

Best Practice

Health Canada has published reports on the implementation of the Accord and Codes, entitled :

• "The Year in Review (2002-2003)" and
• Working Together(2003-2004) (316 KB).

The Office of the Voluntary Sector has compiled its own list of "best practice" examples of collaborative work between the Voluntary Health Sector and the Government of Canada, based on the progress reports submitted by Health Canada in 2003 and 2004. See Government Partnering with the Voluntary Sector on Health (284KB.)

To Obtain a Copy of the Accord and Codes

An Accord Between the Government of Canada and the Voluntary Sector , the Codes of Good Practice on Funding and Policy Dialogue, and several related tools and reports are available for download from the:
Voluntary Sector Initiative website.