Peace and Stabilization Operations Program

Violent conflict, rising state fragility and hybrid threats are reshaping the global landscape, escalating faster, crossing borders more easily, and putting unprecedented pressure on international stability. Confronting these challenges demands adaptive and flexible programming paired with pragmatic diplomacy to strengthen peace, security, and stability where Canada engages.

Canada’s Peace and Stabilization Operations Program (PSOPs) delivers agile, coordinated responses that help to address conflict and crises, address emerging threats, and support resilience in affected regions.

Established in 2016, PSOPs is the successor to Canada’s Stabilization and Reconstruction Task Force (START) and builds on Canada’s long commitment to global peace and security including its support to peace operations. PSOPs brings together government expertise, international partnerships, and inclusive programming to address complex security challenges, including hybrid threats of various forms, economic security threats, and evolving warfare, all of which threaten stability and the safety of civilians.

As global conditions become more volatile, PSOPs adapts. It strengthens Canada’s role in conflict prevention, promotes stability, expands partnerships, and supports crisis response. Through an integrated approach, PSOPs reinforces Canada’s commitment to multilateralism and collective security.

The global environment has become more fractured, more contested, and less anchored in the rules‑based international order that has underpinned decades of stability. In this increasingly challenging context, PSOPs helps reinforce the institutions and partnerships essential to global cooperation.

By working through NATO, the United Nations and various multilateral and regional institutions; by deepening ties across Europe and the Indo‑Pacific; and by engaging to support Ukraine, Haiti, the Middle East, Sudan and West Africa, among other regions, PSOPs pushes back against the drift toward disorder. The program also works with international, national and Canadian NGOs and local communities to strengthen peace, protect civilians and bolster stability where needs are greatest, while supporting global norms for peacebuilding.

On this page

• About PSOPs
• How PSOPs works
• Where PSOPs works
• What PSOPs does
• Results
• Applying for funding

About PSOPs

PSOPs is housed within the Peace and Security Programs Bureau in the International Assistance Partnerships and Programming Branch at Global Affairs Canada (GAC). It is a key tool for responding to international security crises and conflict that affects the lives of citizens in conflict-affected states, and that impact Canada and Canadians, at home and abroad.

Through responsive programming that targets violent conflict, state fragility, and hybrid threats, PSOPs enables rapid, coordinated action across government. By advancing multilateral cooperation and working closely with allies, international partners, and local organizations, PSOPs reinforces Canada’s commitment to security and stability in priority regions.

How PSOPs works

PSOPs is a flexible instrument that enables the Government of Canada to address evolving threats in conflict‑affected regions, to build greater stability at home and abroad. PSOPs works with multilateral institutions, Canadian and international organizations, foreign governments, and local communities to build resilience where it matters most.

Through strategic deployments, global cooperation, and inclusive programming, PSOPs delivers impactful, locally driven solutions to complex security challenges. PSOPs programming also lays the foundation for long-term sustainable development and more predictable global economic environments, allowing for greater prosperity and economic security globally and for Canadians who live, work and travel in those countries.

PSOPs works alongside the following programs:

• Counter‑Terrorism Capacity Building Program

• Weapons Threat Reduction Program

• Anti‑Crime Capacity Building Program

• Democratic Resilience and Human Rights Program

PSOPs programming reinforces and complements the efforts of these related initiatives. It also complements the security assistance delivered through the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Department of National Defence, the Canada Border Services Agency, and Public Safety.

PSOPs programming also works with the full suite of GAC tools including international security policy and diplomacy, conflict analytics, and expert deployment programs, as well as humanitarian and development programming. PSOPs ensures the integration of the Women, Peace and Security agenda throughout its initiatives. Together, these integrated efforts amplify Canada’s ability to address the drivers of conflict, strengthen institutions, and respond to emerging security challenges. As a rapid‑response mechanism, PSOPs brings agility, flexibility, and a high tolerance for risk, enabling Canada to act quickly and effectively in volatile environments.

Where PSOPs works

PSOPs delivers concrete programming in fragile and conflict‑affected contexts, where conflict, violence, weak governance, or hybrid threats strain social, political, and economic systems.

Programs are tailored to each context. They aim to:

• Support peaceful political solutions

• Improve safety and security

• Strengthen societal resilience to emerging threats

• Address root causes of conflict

• Enable political dialogue

Across all programming, PSOPs applies the following cross‑cutting principles:

• Localization

• Conflict sensitivity

• Gender equality and inclusion

• Diverse partnerships

What PSOPs does

PSOPs designs and implements targeted programming at the country, regional, and thematic levels.

Key areas of focus

• Countering hybrid threats

• Advancing economic security

• Protecting civilians

• Providing security sector assistance

• Peacebuilding, conflict prevention and mediation

• Mine action and small arms control

• Promoting justice and accountability

• Peace support operations

Results

In recent years, PSOPs has advanced a diverse portfolio of initiatives that have delivered tangible results including:

• Deploying justice experts to 71 missions supporting justice and accountability efforts in 24 conflict‑affected countries.

• Supporting local initiatives in Mali, Ukraine, and Myanmar that counter hybrid threats by addressing mis/disinformation and promoting peace.

• Building early warning and mediation capacity through programming that trained more than 2,000 community‑based mediators in the Sahel and supported the adoption of national peace agreements across Asia, West Africa, and East Africa.

• Enhancing security sector capacity by strengthening the operational effectiveness of the Haitian National Police and contributing to the effectiveness of the UN-mandated Gang Suppression Force and its Trust Fund, enabling operations designed curb gang violence.

• Increasing the capacity of Ukrainian police to address war‑related public safety challenges.

• Strengthening national security institutions in Iraq and Lebanon to deliver more inclusive and accountable security services.

• Supporting civilian protection initiatives that established peace committees across North and South Darfur, improved the effectiveness of UN peace operations, and enhanced community coordination during emergencies.

• Improving peacekeeping readiness by facilitating pre‑deployment training for more than 200 uniformed medical personnel from troop‑contributing countries and developing UN training materials on explosive hazard awareness, misinformation, and unmanned aerial systems.

• Delivery of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) investigation training to 900 officers to strengthen deployed Zambia Police Service personnel’s ability to respond to SGBV cases during UN peacekeeping missions

Applying for funding

Applications may be considered for funding if aligned with PSOPs’ mandate and approach. If the concept note submitted is reviewed favourably, the organization will be invited to submit a full proposal. Please note that an invitation to submit a full proposal does not guarantee funding. The concept note is available upon request by contacting us at PSOPs-application@international.gc.ca.

Concept note requirements

Submit a concept note (maximum 5 pages) including:

• Organization information, including contact person

• Organizational capacity to deliver the project, including previous experience with Global Affairs Canada and experience in project subject and geographic areas

• Project title, notional budget, time frame and geographic scope

• Initiative description, context description and problem statement

• Description of the chosen approach

• Potential project risks and mitigation strategies

• Expected results (including an indication of gender equality results)

• Brief overview of intended activities

Please also include the following in your application:

• Proof of legal status

• Financial statements (audited preferred) for the past two fiscal years

Please consult the following references to help you incorporate best practices into your initiative and application:

• Results-Based Management Tools at Global Affairs Canada: A How-to Guide

• What is Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+)

• Policy on Gender Equality

• Framework for Assessing Gender Equality Results

• Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security

Submission

Email your concept note to PSOPs-application@international.gc.ca in English or French and in .doc, .docx or .pdf format.