2005-45) News Release
October 5, 2005
Ottawa — The Honourable Aileen Carroll, Minister of International Cooperation, today announced two initiatives to strengthen the Canadian International Development Agency's (CIDA) work with Canadian voluntary and private-sector organizations.
"Canadian non-governmental organizations and businesses make a real difference in developing countries," said Minister Carroll. "Today's announcements are the next steps in our commitment to strengthen the relationship with these partners and promote excellence and innovation in Canada's fight against global poverty. These initiatives are part of Canada's implementation of the International Policy Statement and demonstrate CIDA's commitment to effective poverty reduction programming."
The initiatives announced today are:
The creation of an expert panel of Canadian and international leaders in development cooperation programming. This panel of leading thinkers (see attachment) will provide advice to review, help shape and promote CIDA's partnership programming with its partners. The panel will meet on October 24 and 25, 2005 in Ottawa; and,
The replenishment of the Innovation Fund with an additional $5 million. The Fund, announced last April, supports short-term initiatives undertaken by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to bring forward new and innovative projects in: basic education, governance, health, private-sector development, and the environment. Its criteria have also been expanded to allow new organizations and former partners of the Membership and Specialized Organizations Program to apply.
These two initiatives are part of a comprehensive and multifaceted process for reviewing and renewing CIDA's approaches to programming with Canadian partners. Other steps include the revitalization of the public engagement strategy, a full response to the recent evaluation of the NGO Project Facility and the Environment and Sustainable Development Program, and improving operational efficiencies. The review process will be completed over the coming months and it is anticipated that it will culminate in a framework for effective partnerships by the spring of 2006.
"We are committed to a continuing dialogue across Canada with our voluntary and private sector organizations to better define and target partnership programming," concluded Minister Carroll.
Funding for these initiatives was provided for in the February 2005 Federal Budget and is therefore built into the existing fiscal framework.
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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
THE EXPERT PANEL ON PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMMING
Fazle Hasan Abed, Chairperson and Founder, BRAC
Zehra Aydin, Deputy Coordinator and Chief of Non-Governmental Liaison Service, New York Office, United Nations
Eva Asplund, Director, Department for Co-operation with NGOs, Humanitarian Assistance and Conflict Management, SIDA (Swedish International Development Agency)
Gerry Barr, President and CEO, Canadian Council for International Co-operation (CCIC)
The Honourable Perrin Beatty, P.C., President and CEO, Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME)
Tim Brodhead, President and CEO, J.W. McConnell Family Foundation
Michel Chaurette, Executive Director, Canadian Centre for International Studies and Cooperation (CECI)
Claire Dansereau, Executive Director, CUSO
Dr. PierrevDuplessis, Secretary General and CEO, Canadian Red Cross Society
Jorge Eduardo Saavedra Durão, Director General, ABONG (Brazilian Association of Non-Governmental Organisations)
Anne Gaboury, President and CEO, Développement international Desjardins (DID)
Daniel Gagnier, Senior Vice President, Corporate and External Affairs, Alcan Inc.
Dr. Sulley Gariba, Gariba Development Associates
Cherie Klassen, Executive Director, Alberta Council for Global Cooperation (ACGC)
Christian Lehembre, Head, Aid Effectiveness Division, Development Assistance Committee (DAC), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Simon Maxwell, Director, Overseas Development Institute
Claire Morris, President and CEO, Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC)
Kumi Naidoo, Secretary General, CIVICUS
Maureen O'Neil, President, International Development Research Centre (IDRC)
David Runnalls, President and CEO, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)
Ian Smillie, International Development Consultant
Bernard Wood, President, Bernard Wood & Associates Ltd.
Ian Smillie was a founder of Inter Pares, and was Executive Director of CUSO. He is an associate of the Humanitarianism and War Project at Tufts University. As an international development consultant he has worked for many Canadian, American and European organizations. He is Research Coordinator on Partnership Africa Canada's " Diamonds and Human Security Project " and is a participant in the 45-government " Kimberley Process " which has developed and is managing a global certification system for rough diamonds.
Zehra Aydin was appointed Deputy Coordinator and Chief of the United Nations Non-Governmental Liaison Service's New York Office in mid-2004. Prior to that she served on the Secretary-General's Panel of Eminent Persons on UN-Civil Society Relationships (mid-2003 to mid-2004), the Secretariat of the Commission on Sustainable Development (1993 to mid-2003), and the former UN Centre on Transnational Corporations (1990-1992). Ms. Aydin's work with civil society and the private sector on the UN Commission on Sustainable Development generated new participatory practices, notably at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, 2002, where she managed stakeholder relationships.
The Honourable Perrin Beatty is President and CEO of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME). In 1979 he was appointed Minister of State (Treasury Board), at the time the youngest person ever to serve in a federal Cabinet. He held six additional portfolios including National Revenue in 1984, Solicitor General in 1985, National Defence in 1986, Health and Welfare in 1989, Communications in 1991, and Secretary of State for External Affairs in 1993. Mr. Beatty was appointed President and CEO of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 1995 and assumed his current position on August 15, 1999. In January 2002, Mr. Beatty became the Business Co-Chair of the Canadian Labour and Business Centre. In August 2005, Mr. Beatty was appointed to the Advisory Council on National Security.
David Runnalls is President and CEO of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and also serves as Co-Chair of the China Council Task Force on the World Trade Organization and Environment. He has served as Senior Advisor to the President of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in Ottawa, and to the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme. Mr. Runnalls was the Canadian board member of IUCN-the World Conservation Union for six years and the Chair of the Committee for the World Conservation Congress in 1996. He is a member of the boards of the World Environment Center (Washington), International Institute for Environment and Development (London), and Pollution Probe (Toronto).
Gerry Barr is President and CEO of the Canadian Council for International Co-operation (CCIC). Mr. Barr was the Executive Director of the Steelworkers Humanity Fund and he served as a member of the Steering Committee of the Ethical Trading Action Group, a coalition of Canadian labour, church and social advocacy groups. He has served on several boards including that of the North-South Institute from 1994 to 2000. Mr. Barr was awarded the Pearson Peace Medal in 1996 for his personal contribution to aid to the developing world, mediation in conflict, and peaceful change through international cooperation.
Jorge Eduardo Saavedra Durão is the Director General of the Brazilian Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (ABONG). He is the Executive Director of FASE and is a member of the Brazilian National Council on the Promotion of Racial Equality.
Anne Gaboury is the President and CEO of Développement international Desjardins (DID). Ms. Gaboury held the DID positions of Advisor, Executive Director and Head Director in the Systems and Instrumentation Division, which has enjoyed constant expansion and enrichment. Since joining DID in 1995, Ms. Gaboury's contributions have substantially influenced the course of the organization. The change in direction effected during the past year with regard to information technology solutions was a team effort skilfully directed by Ms. Gaboury.
Michel Chaurette is the Executive Director of the Canadian Centre for International Studies and Cooperation (CECI). He has a track record of 30 years of professional involvement in international cooperation. He joined CECI in 1984 first as Project Manager and later become Overseas Program Director. Before CECI he was a project manager and a deputy director of operations at the francophone Africa Branch of CIDA and he also worked at the Franco-Québécois Office where he was in charge of internships.
Tim Brodhead is the President and CEO of The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation. He chairs the board of the ETC Group (formerly Rural Advancement Fund International) and is past Chair of Philanthropic Foundations Canada. He is a board member of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Calmeadow Foundation. Mr. Brodhead founded the Agency for Co-operation and Research in Development (ACORD) in 1973 and co-founded Inter Pares in 1977. He has carried out training programs on gender and development for CIDA, several agencies, and a number of governments. In 2001 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada and in June 2002, received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Carleton University in Ottawa.
Bernard Wood is the President of Bernard Wood & Associates Limited (Ottawa) and an associate of International Development and Strategies (Paris). He was the Director of the Development Cooperation Directorate of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), heading the Secretariat of the Development Assistance Committee. He has done extensive consultancy work on topics in both development cooperation and security. Mr. Wood was the founding CEO of the North-South Institute. He has served as the Personal Representative of the Prime Minister of Canada and as a member of the Canadian panel of the Canada-Japan Forum 2000.
Claire Dansereau is the Executive Director of CUSO. Ms. Dansereau has served as Deputy Minister of Transportation and Highways for the government of British Columbia and as the Vice-President at Forest Renewal BC, a crown corporation responsible for assisting forest-dependent communities and workers to adapt to changes in that economy. She also sat on the governing body of the British Columbia Workers' Compensation Board and numerous other committees and organizations. Ms. Dansereau is a former board member of the Canadian Council for International Co-operation, and has served on the board of Engineers Without Borders.
Dr. Pierre Duplessis is the Secretary General and CEO of the Canadian Red Cross Society. He is the Vice-President of the Coordinating Group of the Donor Forum, which consists of 30 of the largest donor Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies. Dr. Duplessis is currently adjunct professor at the University of Ottawa. He has taught at McGill University and the Université de Montréal, and has published several scientific papers. An active volunteer for more than 25 years, Dr. Duplessis serves on the boards of the Canadian Medical Foundation, the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa Health Service, and the Rideau Club.
Dr. Sulley Gariba is a policy analyst and a monitoring and evaluation specialist, with nearly 20 years' experience in academic and policy research, institutional change, governance, and the evaluation of development. He is a member and senior advisor of Ghana's National Development Planning Commission, Executive Director of the Institute for Policy Alternatives, Head of Gariba Development Associates, and adjunct professor at Trent University. He also serves on the board of the Participatory Development Forum. Dr. Gariba was founding President of the newly established International Development Evaluation Association (IDEAS). Dr. Gariba received the Millennium Excellence Award for Rural Development in Ghana in August 2005.
Cherie Klassen is the Executive Director of the Alberta Council for Global Cooperation (ACGC). She also works with the union-side labour law firm Blair Chahley Seveny and is currently the Global Education Advisor to the Executive of the Global Environmental and Outdoor Education Council. Ms. Klassen works with the Society for Safe and Caring Schools and Communities (associated with the Alberta Teachers' Association), and is also a member of a Steering Committee for a CIDA-funded, Global Classroom Initiative project. In 2003, Ms. Klassen founded the Legal Activist Collective, a group that advocates to make Canadian laws more inclusive, applicable, and useful to everyone regardless of income or background.
Claire Morris is the President and CEO of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC). She was the Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs at the Privy Council Office of Canada. Ms. Morris served as New Brunswick's Secretary to the Cabinet and Clerk of the Executive Council and was Deputy Minister of the Policy Secretariat and also of Health and Community Services. Her extensive international experience includes serving as Canadian co-chair of the Steering Committee on the Canada-Russia Public Administration Reform Project and heading the Canadian delegation to Russia in 2003. In 1995, she received the Public Policy Forum Award, in 2000 was awarded an honorary doctorate of letters from the University of New Brunswick, and in 2005 was awarded an honorary degree from Thompson Rivers University.
Kumi Naidoo is the CIVICUS Secretary General and Chair of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP). He has a long history of involvement in the non-governmental sector and was previously Executive Director of the South African NGO Coalition (SANGOCO), Executive Director of the National Literacy Cooperation of South Africa, and Director of the Independent Electoral Commission and the South African Committee for Higher Education Trust. He was active in the anti-apartheid struggle in his native South Africa and has also worked as a researcher, journalist, university lecturer, and youth counsellor. Mr. Naidoo is a Rhodes Scholar.
Maureen O'Neil is the President of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). She currently serves on the board of directors for the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, is co-chair of the World Economic Forum's Digital Divide Supervisory Committee, and is a member of the Markle Foundation's Global Digital Opportunity Initiative. Ms. O'Neil was Interim President of the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, President of The North-South Institute, and Deputy Minister of Citizenship in the Ontario government. She represented Canada on the UN Commission on the Status of Women and on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development committees. Ms. O'Neil has honorary doctorates of law from Carleton University and Wilfrid Laurier University, in Canada.
Simon Maxwell is Director of the Overseas Development Institute. He is an economist who worked overseas for ten years, in Kenya and India for the United Nations Development Programme, and in Bolivia for UKODA (now Department for International Development, U.K.), and then for 16 years at the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, latterly as Programme Manager for Poverty, Food Security and the Environment. Mr. Maxwell has written widely on poverty, food security, agricultural development, and aid. His current research interests include global governance, economic and social rights, social exclusion, and the dissolving boundary between North and South.
Christian Lehembre is the Head of the Aid Effectiveness Division of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). He has served as the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative for Sao Tomé and Principe (STP) and Guinea; he also served as UNDP Deputy Resident Representative for Ethiopia and Mauritania. Mr. Lehembre has advocated and initiated the Platform for Dialogue on the Future of STP with Oil and has also advocated and supported the creation of Poverty Observatory to monitor implementation, and to update, STP's Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper in line with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Fazle Hasan Abed is the Founder and Chairperson of BRAC. For over 30 years, Mr. Abed has been fighting malnutrition, child mortality, illiteracy and social injustice for the people of Bangladesh. BRAC recently went international and has been involved in Afghanistan and in Sri Lanka. Mr. Abed has received numerous awards both nationally and internationally, including the UNESCO Noma Prize for Literacy (1985), UNICEF's Maurice Pate Award (1992), Doctorate of Laws from Queen's University, Canada (1994) Olof Palme Award (2001), Honorary Doctorate of Education, University of Manchester, UK (2003), the Gates Award for Global Health (2004), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Mahbub ul Haq Award for Outstanding Contribution to Human Development (2004).
Daniel Gagnier is Alcan Inc.'s Senior Vice President, Corporate and External Affairs. He is Chair of the International Organization for Standardization's (ISO) Technical Committee on Environmental Management, and Chair of the Strategic Advisory Group on Social Responsibility for ISO. In 2004, Mr. Gagnier was named Chair, Board of Directors, for the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME). He was Assistant Secretary to the Cabinet responsible for economic policy and programs, at the Federal-Provincial Relations Office. He was Ontario's Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Special Advisor to the Cabinet, and Chief of Staff of the Premier's Office. Mr. Gagnier served as Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet (Communications) and Advisor at the Privy Council Office. He was also President of the Brewers Association of Canada.
Eva Asplund is the Director for the Department for Cooperation with Non-Governmental Organisations, Humanitarian Assistance and Conflict Management for Sweden's SIDA (Swedish Agency for International Development Cooperation). Ms. Asplund has worked at SIDA since 1977 and has served as Editor of SIDA's magazine Report, has worked on coordination of development cooperation with countries in Asia and Africa, as Head of Planning at the Information Secretariat, and also as Head of the Policy Secretariat. She also gained field experience while working in a village in Bangladesh.
