(2005-40) News Release
August 22, 2005
Vancouver — The Honourable Aileen Carroll, Minister of International Cooperation, today announced over $8 million in funding to Canadian civil society and private-sector organizations to support projects that will promote and facilitate innovative approaches to strengthening good governance practices in the developing world. These projects will be funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) through Canada Corps.
Minsiter Carroll made the announcement during a visit to the offices of Hatfield Consultants in West Vancouver.
"Good governance is a basic requirement for peace, security and sustainable political and socio-economic development," said Minister Carroll. "It gives me great pride to know that these projects will help mobilize over 200 Canadians to participate in the development of good governance practices."
The 16 projects announced today were selected from 161 proposals received. Of these projects, 13 will take place in Africa and three in Asia. Many of these also involve Canadian youth and reciprocal professional exchanges between Canada and the host country.
Funding for this initiative was provided for in the February 2005 federal budget and is therefore built into the existing fiscal framework.
- 30 -
Information
Andrew Graham
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of International Cooperation
Telephone: (819) 953-6238
Media Relations Office
Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)
Telephone: (819) 953-6534
E-mail: info@acdi-cida.gc.ca
Web site: www.cida.gc.ca (electronic version of document)
PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS
Hatfield Consultants (West Vancouver, British Columbia), CARE Canada (Ottawa, Ontario) and Strata 360 (Montréal, Québec)Strengthening good governance in Aceh through improved environmental management and spatial planning, Indonesia: to help local and regional governments and community groups develop and improve good governance practices to recover sustainable livelihoods in tsunami-affected areas and improve mechanisms for community planning and participation in reconstruction efforts. This project has a special focus on incorporating natural resource information, environmental analysis, and community land-use in a format that can be easily used by local decision-makers. CIDA contribution: $571,200. Contact: Thomas Boivin (604) 926-3261
Canadian Human Rights Foundation (Montréal, Québec), International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development (Montréal), Centre d'Études et de Recherches Internationales (CÉRIUM) de l'Université de Montréal (Montréal) and McGill University (Montréal)Strengthening human rights protection in the Tsunami-affected regions of Indonesia: to strengthen the capacity of the Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights in its efforts to implement the government's National Plan of Action on Human Rights; integrate human rights concepts and approaches in the reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in Aceh and the surrounding provinces; and share Canadian expertise in the area of human rights education. CIDA contribution: $213,696. Contact: Ian Hamilton (514) 954-0382
Carrefour de Solidarité Internationale (Sherbrooke, Québec) and Institut de recherche et d'enseignement pour les coopératives de l'université de Sherbrooke (Sherbrooke)Increasing the competencies and capabilities of peasant federations in Mali: to strengthen the capacity of 15 rural organizations and 15 women's organizations to undertake community development activities and increase community participation in local planning and development. This project will reach 200,000 people in 270 villages. Training in managing organizations and cooperatives, and in establishing new programs that meet the needs of the poor and respect their rights will also be offered. CIDA contribution: $427,281. Contact: Marco Labrie (819) 566-8595, poste 22
Collège de Maisonneuve (Montréal, Québec) and Ministère de la Justice du Québec (Montréal) Taking concerted action to promote and protect young people's rights, Burkina Faso: to support the development of legislation to protect the rights of the child. Canadian experts will help establish a national action committee integrating government ministries and non-governmental organizations to provide advice to government on proposed new legislation and take into account existing national and international law. Six committee members will travel to Canada to learn more about Canadian legislation, training approaches and practical issues in child protection. CIDA contribution: $588,857. Contact: Hélène Brassard (514) 245-7131 poste 4461
CUSO (Ottawa, Ontario) and National Judicial Institute (Ottawa) Institutional strengthening and capacity building of the Judicial Service, Ghana: to improve and upgrade the skills and knowledge of the staff of the Judicial Service and enable them to fulfill their roles and responsibilities in the development and sustenance of good governance and rule of law in Ghana. This project will assess training needs assessments of judges, magistrates and administrative staff; exchanges between teams from the Judicial Service of Ghana and the National Judicial Institute of Canada, the development of a pool of trainers in Ghana, and speaking engagements across Canada for the Canadian participants to share their experiences. CIDA contribution: $600,000. Contact: Debby Coté (613) 829-7445
CANADEM (Ottawa, Ontario) and Partnership Africa Canada (Ottawa) CAN-Jeunesse Governance and Development Initiative, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania: to expand CANADEM's partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) by sending 16 young Canadians to support UNDP Country Offices in sub-Saharan Africa in their efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and the governance objectives set out in each country's national poverty reduction strategies. The Canadian youth will be matched with and mentored by volunteer senior-level Canadians based in the same host countries. CIDA contribution: $599,996. Contact: Paul LaRose-Edwards (613) 789-3328
Foundation for International Training (Markham, Ontario) and Association for Higher Education and Development (Ottawa) Promoting a culture of good governance through values and outcome-based ethics, Ethiopia: to help the Ethiopian Civil Service College create a civil service with the highest ethical standards. A team of Canadians of Ethiopian origin and Canadian governance experts will work together to develop and provide ethics courses, train trainers, create a code of ethics and establish a seminar series on ethics and governance for the college community. Four youth interns from the University of Toronto will support the project in the field and in Canada. CIDA contribution: $566,777. Contact: Mirabelle Rodrigues (905) 305-8680
GENIVAR Groupe Conseil (Québec, Québec), Nouvelles Solidarités Internationales Québec ((Montréal) et Jeune Barreau de Québec (Québec)Promoting justice and achieving social awareness for women in Burkina Faso: to strengthen the capacity of civil society organizations and government to develop communications tools that will increase women's access to justice and lead to greater equality between women and men. Although new legislation protects the rights of women in Burkina Faso, it is not yet widely known or applied. This project will use action-research to find the most effective ways to increase awareness and use of the law. Lessons learned will be shared in Burkina Faso and in Canada. CIDA contribution: $600,000. Contact: Suzanne Ménard (418) 623-2254
Human Settlements Development Workshop (Guelph, Ontario) and Mennonite Economic Development Associates (Waterloo) Building a post-conflict model of community-based entrepreneurship and good governance, Angola: to help develop a regulatory framework for small- and medium-enterprise in Angola and to pilot a sustainable microfinance institution based on principles of good corporate governance and best microfinance practices. The project will initially reach about 4,000 clients (78% women) and help them establish income-generating activities, thus creating jobs and strengthening communities. It will also raise awareness about HIV/AIDS prevention. CIDA contribution: $600,000. Contact: Maribel Gonzales (519) 763-3978
Institute on Governance (Ottawa, Ontario), Voluntary Service Overseas Canada (Ottawa), and Project Help Lesotho (Ottawa) Building governance capacity and community engagement: Youth against HIV/AIDS, Lesotho: to build the capacity of youth and local government to fight HIV/AIDS in three of Lesotho's poorest districts and at the national level. [Lesotho has the third highest incidence of HIV/AIDS in the world.] Youth councils comprised of Canadian and Lesotho youth, and involving young Canadians of Lesotho origin and Canadian experts in governance and HIV/AIDS, will be trained and supported in their efforts to play a leadership role in raising awareness and implementing strategies to fight HIV/AIDS. CIDA contribution: $584,326. Contact: Laura Edgar (613) 562-0092 ext. 226
International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development (Montréal, Québec), McGill University, Faculty of Law (Montréal) and Centre for International Studies at Université de Montréal (Montréal)Strengthening good governance through African mechanisms of human rights protection, Africa: to strengthen human rights and democratic principles and practices in African politics and institutions. Four young Canadian professionals with legal backgrounds will work with the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) in the Gambia to increase the secretariat's ability to deal with complaints and to publish a research report on best practices in African states with respect to human rights and law enforcement. CIDA contribution: $302,600. Contact: Razmik Panossian (514) 283-6073
Journalists for Human Rights (Toronto, Ontario) and TakingITGlobal (Toronto)Governance, human rights and media, Ghana: to build the capacity of local Ghanaian media to report on human rights issues more effectively. Four Canadian experts will work directly with 200 Ghanaian journalists, editors, owners, and instructors in print, radio and television, to increase their abilities to report on human rights issues and to train others in this area. Sixteen young Canadian journalists will also participate. All of the Canadian participants will share their experiences through speaking engagements at 14 universities across Canada and by writing/producing 20 print, radio or television pieces for Canadian media outlets. CIDA contribution: $411,264. Contact: Ben Peterson (416) 413-0240
Service d'assistance canadienne aux organismes (SACO/CESO) (Montréal, Québec) and Canada 25: Young Leaders Forum (Toronto, Ontario)Canada-Cameroon project to promote greater public involvement in local governance: to strengthen the capacity of two provincial associations of elected municipal officials and one non-governmental organization (active in every province in Cameroon) to increase public participation in community development activities and in the upcoming 2007 elections, and to support the strategic interests of marginalized groups such as women and youth. This will be done through a series of needs assessments workshops, train-the-trainers sessions and awareness-raising campaigns. The project involves 80 Canadian mayors and municipal councillors, and 25 young Canadians. CIDA contribution: $599,983. Contact: Carole Martin (514) 875-7226
UNICEF Canada (Toronto, Ontario)Strengthening the judicial, legal and paralegal system in selected Commonwealth countries in Africa: A practical guide on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC) for use in courts of law, Kenya and Sierra Leone: Under the leadership of two African lawyers, four young Canadian lawyers and four young African lawyers will collaborate on case law research in Kenya and Sierra Leone to identify missed opportunities in existing case law for using the UN CRC. Their research will be used to develop a practical guide on using the CRC in court and a training course that could reach 1800 judges, lawyers and paralegals working in family, criminal, constitutional and human rights law. This will help ensure that the best interests of the child are reflected and integrated in each country's legal framework. CIDA contribution: $599,966. Contact: David Agnew (416) 482-4444
Université du Québec à Montréal (Montréal, Québec), Regroupement provincial des maisons d'hébergement et de transition pour femmes victimes de violence conjugale (Montréal), Centre d'aide et de lutte aux agressions à caractère sexuel (Montréal), Fédération des femmes du Québec (Montréal), et Y des Femmes (Montréal)Projet d'appui à la LICADHO – Droits des femmes et des filles au Cambodge: to improve women and girls' rights in Cambodia, by increasing their protection from domestic violence, abuse, and sexual traffic. At the local level, community groups will be trained to understand and prevent violence, create support networks for victims of abuse, and increase understanding of current protection measures. As well, the capacity of local authorities to apply and enforce existing legislation will be increased. At the national level, legal and psychological tools to support women and girls will be developed. CIDA contribution: $599,973. Contact: Peter Leuprecht (514) 987-3667
Voluntary Service Overseas Canada (Ottawa, Ontario), the Institute on Governance (Ottawa) and GlobalAware (Toronto)SCORE: Strengthening communities rights and empowerment, Bangladesh: to improve the lives of some of the most disadvantaged people in one of the poorest countries in the world, by building the capacity of local communities to participate in decision-making and ensure that poor people's voices inform and influence government policy at national and local levels. The project will provide training to communities on how to identify and exercise their basic rights, and to local governments on how to deliver effective programs. It is expected to benefit three communities with a total population of over 4.8 million. CIDA contribution: $562,337. Contact: Debbie Vanderburgh (613) 234-1364.
