Anita Anand Height, Age, Husband, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Anita Anand

• Anita Anand was born to a Tamilian father and a Punjabi mother in Kentville, Nova Scotia.

• Her parents initially moved to Nigeria from where her parents immigrated to Nova Scotia in the early 1960s. They then settled in Kentville where Anita was born in 1967.

• In an interview, Anita fondly recollected growing up in Kentville and said that although they were one of very few South Indian families residing in Kentville, they never faced any difficulties there.

• Both her parents were followers of Mahatma Gandhi. Her father once got an opportunity to meet Mahatma Gandhi when he worked for the Indian Independence Movement.

• After completing her High School Diploma in 1985, Anita relocated to Ontario to pursue her further education.
  

  Anita Anand (in yellow top) during her high school days

• After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in law, Anita did articleship at Torys from 1992 to 1993.

• Anita was called to the Ontario Bar in 1994.

• In the same year, she began working as an associate at Torys. She worked there till 1997.

• At Torys, she met John Knowlton, who she married in 1995.
  

  An old picture of Anita Anand and her husband

• She then shifted her career to teaching and began working as an assistant professor (adjunct) at the Faculty of Law of Western University in 1997. She worked there for around two years.

• In 1999, Anita began working as an assistant professor of law at Queen’s University. In 2003, she was promoted to the rank of associate professor at the university.

• In the fall of 2005, Anita joined the Yale Law School as a visiting lecturer in law. She taught comparative corporate governance there.

• From 2005 to 2006, Anita was a visiting Olin scholar in law and economics at Yale Law School. There she conducted empirical research on the effects of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on Canadian public companies.

• In 2006, she joined the University of Toronto as a law professor.

• From 2007 to 2009, she served as an associate dean at the University of Toronto.

• In August 2010, Anita was appointed as the Chairman of the Investor Advisory Panel at the Ontario Securities Commission. She held the position till October 2012.

• Anand served as the academic director of the Centre for the Legal Profession at the University of Toronto from 2010 to 2019.

• From March 2012 to February 2015, Anita served as the Chair Board of Directors at the Canadian Museum of Indian Civilization.

• She has also served on the Boards of Oakville Hydro Electricity Distribution Inc., Oakville Hospital Foundation, Economic Investment Trust Limited, and Diversified Royalty Corp.

• From 2014 to 2016, she served as the Corporate Secretary and Board of Governor St. Mildred’s Lightbourn School.

• She has also been a Board of Governor at Massey College for three years.

• Ankita was a Fellow-in-Residence at CD Howe Institute from 2014 to 2019.

• She was also appointed to the Rotman School of Management as the director of policy and research at the Capital Markets Research Institute, as well as to the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto.

• Anita Anand started her political career in 2019 when she was elected as the Member of Parliament for Oakville, a suburban area in the Greater Toronto Region.

• She quickly made her mark as an influential member of the Liberal Party.

• From 2019 to 2021, she held the position of Minister of Public Services and Procurement, where she was responsible for Canada’s procurement of vaccines and personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Anand played a crucial role in negotiating contracts to secure essential supplies for Canadians, such as vaccines, personal protective equipment (PPE), and rapid tests. Her effective leadership throughout this crisis earned her significant acclaim.
  

  Anita Anand in her office

• Between 2021 and 2023, while serving as Minister of National Defence, she led Canada’s efforts to provide military aid to Ukraine during the 2022 Russian invasion, worked to reform the culture within the Canadian Armed Forces after a series of sexual misconduct scandals, and aimed to strengthen Canada’s military procurement of warships and aircraft, while also striving to restore Canada’s military reputation amid widespread criticism.

• She has been serving as the Minister of Transport and Internal Trade since 2024.
  

  Anita Anand as Transport Minister of Canada

• She is the first Hindu woman elected to Parliament and the first Hindu to serve as a cabinet minister in Canada.

• Since her marriage, she has been residing with her family in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

• Anita is well-versed in three languages- English, French, and Hindi.

• An avid animal lover, Anita has two pet dogs.
  

  Anita Anand with her pet dogs