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Results: 1 - 15 of 21
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 16:38
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Ladies and gentlemen, colleagues, good afternoon. Today I would like to update you on my trip to the Horn of Africa last July, and then to follow with Canada's response to the humanitarian situation in the Horn of Africa as well as the Sahel region. In addition, we'd like to provide you with information on supplementary estimates (C) and the main estimates.
First, I would like to say a few words about our commitment to Africa in order to provide context for our work in the Horn and Sahel.
Over the last few years, there has been significant progress on a number of fronts in Africa.
Some African countries have seen strong policy reforms and increased productivity levels in agriculture and food security. There are now more children in school, particularly girls, than ever before. Canada is committed to Africa and continues to deliver results.
Through support from CIDA, Africa's economies are growing more sustainably. For example, Ghana has had an average agricultural sector growth rate of about 4.3% over recent years, thanks in large part to investments from Canada.
Fostering democracy is another area where Canada's support has yielded results. For example, in Kenya, CIDA is supporting women's rights, promoting women's access to political participation, and supporting judicial reform.
As promised, our government met its G-8 commitment to double our international assistance to Africa. In 2009-10 Africa received more than 50% of CIDA's food aid, 61% of its agricultural support, 63% of CIDA's health support, and nearly 65% of CIDA's bilateral spending on maternal, newborn, and child health.
Of the funding Canada committed as part of our Muskoka initiative on maternal, newborn, and child health, 80% will flow to sub-Saharan Africa. Canada was the first G-8 country to fulfill our commitment in L'Aquila to improve food security and sustainable agriculture.
The African continent is undoubtedly one of those regions with the potential to flourish. But when we look at Africa's potential and development, we cannot ignore the continent's mounting humanitarian needs.
As I speak, an escalating food security and nutrition crisis in the Sahel region in western Africa threatens more than 10 million people. Canada is currently the second-largest country donor to the humanitarian response in the Sahel. Two weeks ago I announced support to improve access to food and nutritional support as well as community-based treatment of acute malnutrition, livelihood support, and access to safe water.
CIDA's support to the World Food Programme alone will help provide more than 7 million people in Niger, Chad, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Mauritania with life-saving food assistance.
In the meantime, across the continent a combination of factors have plunged the Horn of Africa into a dire humanitarian crisis. Canada responded quickly to meet the needs of millions of people affected by the drought, particularly those suffering from the famine in Somalia. With Canadian support, the World Food Programme and partners are now feeding around 5.2 million people across the Horn of Africa.
In part with CIDA's support, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has also been able to meet the ongoing needs of nearly a million Somali refugees in Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Kenya.
As part of Canada's response to the drought in east Africa, we are requesting $70.4 million in supplementary estimates (C) to meet our July 2011 commitment that the government would match donations by Canadians to the east Africa drought relief fund.
As you know, last July I visited camps in and around Dadaab in northern Kenya to see first-hand the extent of the humanitarian crisis at that time, and I gained a better understanding of what would be needed. Since then, the famine in Somalia has decreased from six regions to three, but the circumstances remain extremely precarious. We are monitoring the situation closely, and Canada remains committed to helping the suffering in this region.
I'll now give just a few remarks regarding supplementary estimates (C) and the main estimates for the next fiscal year.
CIDA's supplementary estimates (C) include a proposed increase of $359.4 million to our grants and contributions authorities and an increase of $52,400 to our operating authorities. The increase of $359.4 million to CIDA's grants and contributions authorities consists of several items.
In addition to Canada's fast-start financing commitments under the Copenhagen Accord and our response to the drought in East Africa, CIDA is seeking additional authorities of $100 million for grants to international organizations.
This additional authority does not require additional funds, nor does it obligate CIDA to spend this amount. Rather, it provides CIDA with the ability to address the global requirements for humanitarian assistance in areas such as food and nutrition.
Other items that accounted for the increase in CIDA's budget are transfers to and from other government departments, and we can give you details on those if you require.
We also have an increase of $52,400 for CIDA's operating authorities for the following items: a transfer of $30,000 from the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat departmental audit software initiative and $22,400 in increased funding to support the delivery of Canada's fast-start financing commitment under the Copenhagen Accord.
Our budgetary expenditures presented in the main estimates for 2012-13 are $3.4 billion. I can answer any questions on this, and the president can help out with more information on the main estimates as well as the supplementary estimates.
I would like to point out that on the grants and contributions front, some things have gone up while others have gone down.
The increase is the result of the $20.9 million for maternal, newborn, and child health and a $1.5-million transfer from DFAIT for international platform costs.
The decrease comes from transferring $18.4 million to DFAIT for the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives and sunsetting $12 million in respect of Canada's commitment to the International Organization of La Francophonie water and sanitation program.
Our report on plans and priorities, which will be tabled in early May, will provide more detail on strategic outcomes and contain information on objectives and initiatives and planned results.
I have left out a few pieces of information, but if there are questions, I think this information will come out in the answers.
Thank you.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 16:48
I'm available at the committee's request.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 16:49
Thank you for the question. It certainly enables me to hopefully be able to give you a full and comprehensive answer on this issue.
Let me first point out that we believe government aid and development is not about organizations; it's about helping people who Canadians want to see helped. It's about making sure that we're making a difference in their lives on a long-term sustainable basis.
In order to do this, we believe that we have to analyze and make sure that we are making our selections on a merit-based process. Consequently, as I say, in terms of sustainability we are actually asking what happens after five years of funding. How is this project, how are the outcomes, and how are the improvements going to be maintained by the local community, by the local leadership in the community, or by the governments that are implicated there?
There is no shift in focus. Since our government took office, we've said that we were going to make our international assistance effective, and effective means making a real difference, a difference that will impact and also maximize the value of our aid dollars. We believe that this is what Canadians want to see. They want to see that people in poverty are not only lifted out of poverty but are also able to stand on their own, and able to stand on their own over the long term.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 16:52
Thank you very much for the question.
Let me first say that I believe that our partners in every province in this country are reputable. They certainly do have a long experience, but again, as I said, we want to make sure that Canadian aid dollars and assistance dollars are going to the best projects.
The uniqueness—which I'm very proud of—that Canada and particularly our Quebec partners are able to offer is the advantage of working in the French language. I think this is one place where we could stand up and directly offer help in Haiti. We saw many partner organizations from Quebec being supported by CIDA to help Haiti with its reconstruction and recovery.
As I said, Madame, we want to make sure that we're providing the support with a people focus: the people who we want to see being helped to go to school, to get better educated, and to get their health care. Consequently, as I say, we support a number of Quebec organizations, but that doesn't necessarily drive the rationale on how the money...the decisions on where the support goes.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 16:55
Certainly we'll meet with all organizations, and we do not necessarily select by province. We look to see what we want to do, what subject matter we want to make progress on, and make invitations. A number of Quebec representatives were invited to many of the round tables I have had.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 16:56
Thank you for the question.
As you know, they were announced in September, so they're at their very initial stages. These are projects that were developed with Canadian organizations. The Canadian organizations then made a proposal and request to CIDA. CIDA was not part of the partnership, which was first developed before they came to CIDA.
Of all the major developing countries, Canada is latest in forming partnerships with the private sector. Other countries—our British, Australian, and American colleagues—have undertaken projects and are increasing those partnerships with the private sector. In fact, it has been noted that Canada is late to the table, and I think we have great opportunity here.
People have noted as well that in order to get a sustainable reduction in poverty.... I'll just quote, as we'll all recognize, Bono, who said, "A lot of people realize that the real way out of poverty is never aid. It's commerce.” Others have said that states with ample resources, strong economic institutions, and good public policies will face the best in the future. Raising people out of poverty means not aid but enabling them to have the opportunity to get good, productive jobs and to increase their family incomes. If you build up a good economy for the country, that's what sustainability is about.
The international community forecast shows there are primarily two major areas for economies of developing countries to grow. They are agriculture and the natural resources sector. In the natural resources sector we're playing a big part, according to the forecast for growth of economies and jobs in those countries. I think Canada has a unique opportunity to have some very good, reputable mining companies and good NGO organizations come together to make sure they are making a difference.
There are the three projects, but we really have to catch up with our other major donors and take advantage of some innovative ideas. As I said, they have expertise in many of the fields. They have innovative approaches, etc., and they want to make a contribution. There are many mining companies, whether they're Canadian or any other country in origin, that are doing their corporate social responsibility.
I was in Mongolia. The mining companies there are contributing to the social development of Mongolia at a higher level than Canada's aid and development program could ever do. Consequently, we want to have them contribute, working with the NGO community, to give us the additional expertise and an additional approach to innovative new ideas on how to ensure we're going to grow the economies and create jobs.
A large proportion of the populations of developing countries are youth. In the future, over 52% of the population in these countries will be youth. We have seen recently what happens when a majority of youth are unemployed: they have nothing to do, nothing constructive, etc., and their alternatives are something that I don't think we as Canadians want them to choose.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:01
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:01
Can I just make one comment about my encounter and meeting other countries? The ministers of mining actually asked to meet with me. When I visit countries or when I attend conferences, in every case—Honduras, Peru, Mongolia—I ask them how Canada can help, and they say they want to learn about our mining regulations. They want to learn about our public service. They don't want aid; there are many countries helping them with aid. What they want is something they believe Canada can offer to them.
On microfinancing, as you know, Canada is a strong supporter of microfinancing in many countries. There was a recent conference on microfinancing, and one of the experts said that microfinancing has been great. It has been good for job creation. The next step is business growth, because they've got to have businesses that will create jobs. It's a great initiative, but the next step that I think all the donor countries are looking at is how to create jobs and grow businesses.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:04
I don't think that's a cut in programming, but I'll let the president explain the number for you.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:05
Thank you for the question.
What we've learned is that when we start by looking at the number, it's not necessarily the most effective way of looking at how we provide our support and how we place the activities we believe are appropriate.
For example, in Mongolia, when we asked them what they would like us to help with, they asked for public service. We engaged the Canadian public service with the Mongolian public service, and they actually developed public service legislation. The cost of that program, which will make a dramatic difference in the future of Mongolia, was under $400,000.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:05
Well, I would say there is not a definite game plan for Syria, because nobody knows what will happen as the situation in Syria evolves. As you know, the situation in Syria is not improving. It's not getting any better. The violence is getting worse. The people who are affected are increasing....
The one thing that I would say has improved and where we've made one step forward is that humanitarian organizations that had no access at all into Syria are now able to get into Syria on a sporadic basis. There's no guarantee, there's no corridor, there is no two-hours-a-day access agreement by the Syrian people who are fighting. Consequently we have an increase in the internal and external refugee situation.
Right now what we are focused on is trying to provide the humanitarian aid that's required and making sure that those organizations that can get into Syria are adequately supplied.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:08
Let me first say there is no ideology. I think the ideology or the principle on which we make our decisions is the principle on which all Canadians want us to make them: it's to make sure that in international work their hard-earned tax dollars are going to actually reach the people they want to help, do it effectively, and do it on a sustainable basis.
The first thing that Canadians would love to see is more people who can stand on their own without any need for them—that family—to continually have aid, etc., so I would suggest that it's not ideology, but principle. It's good use of taxpayers' dollars. It's also saying we want to really help those—
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:09
I'm going to have to say that Canada has an abundance of very, very good organizations. On the one hand, we're privileged to have so many. On the other hand, we have some decisions that we make. It's not about organizations. It's about what organization and what project will in fact deliver the results.
The rating system is heavily weighted not to the organization or where the organization's head office is, but to the actual project. How many people will be helped? In what way will they be helped? Will this be sustainable? Will it enable that community to stand on its feet? Will it help the government to make sure that the government one day will take over a public health system and a public education system so that every child in that country can go to school, and hopefully go to school at no fee?
This is what we mean by sustainability and ensuring that we make a difference. It's not about organizations. It's about the best projects and the best results and the best use of Canada's aid dollars.
View Bev Oda Profile
CPC (ON)
View Bev Oda Profile
2012-03-14 17:11
Thank you for the question.
As you know, I visited Haiti in January. I would say there is some disappointment because there has been some delay with the political situation and the slow and even more recent events there as far as a government in place.... Most of the projects that we're undertaking we're doing with organizations, so we're not reliant on government. The ministries are continuing the work so that our work can continue, and hopefully we'll find a quick resolution to a new prime minister and a new government in the country of Haiti.
We're doing many projects. One that we support very strongly in Haiti is the school feeding program. The school feeding program is an incentive for families to send their children to school because when children go to school, they get fed a good, nutritious meal every day, and at the end of the week, they also get to take some food home for their families. Consequently, we announced that we are increasing our support for the World Food Programme's school feeding program.
As well, I was there recently in January and announced that Canada will support the resettlement of the families that are in the Champs de Mars national park, and that's ongoing as well.
We've also been able to maintain our support for the health clinics. The incidence of cholera will vary, but they're able to manage that, and there's reduced death as a consequence of cholera.
We continue to do our economic growth, and we now have almost 400,000 who have access to credit and financial systems. We've established a very good program for the farmers, which is a first-time credit system for farmers so that after the earthquake, they're going to be able to buy the tools and the inputs they require to make sure they've got a good restart into their agriculture.
I also went to visit a hospital where we're providing maternal health, prenatal care, and delivery free of cost, and that has increased the health of women through safer births. They're actually following up with postnatal care for their babies as well. We've made a lot of progress, and we continue to keep our commitment to Haiti.
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