2007-08-25(2007-17) News Release
TORONTO — The Honourable Beverley J. Oda, Minister of International Cooperation, announced today that Canada will substantially boost its development commitment to the Afghan province of Kandahar by providing $45 million in support of five key projects targeting health and community development. Minister Oda made this announcement today while taking part in Afghanistan Independence Day Celebrations in Toronto. The new projects build on major funding announced in February 2007 by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to accelerate the reconstruction and development process.
"Canada's new government is proud to stand beside the Afghan people as they strive to build better lives for themselves and secure a better future for their children,” said Minister Oda. “Today’s contribution will build on previous successes by supporting projects aiming to enhance health services and community development in Kandahar, one of the provinces in greatest need of our assistance."
Canada's strategy in Kandahar province focuses on responding to basic human needs, strengthening livelihoods, and increasing the capacity of local government. The funding announced today will be allocated as follows:
$17.5 million to the World Health Organization (WHO) to help implement a national polio eradication initiative and a tuberculosis control program;
$10 million to the National Solidarity Program to build on the substantial results achieved to date in the areas of local governance and community development;
$5 million to the Kandahar Local Initiatives Program, which will support
small-scale, quick-action development and reconstruction initiatives that respond to immediate needs;
$10 million to UNICEF to help improve access to maternal and child health services in the southern region, with a focus on Mirwais Hospital in Kandahar City; and,
$2.5 million for a rapid-response health intervention fund for local NGOs and institutions in Kandahar.
The $45 million announced today is part of Canada's total contribution of more than $1 billion over 10 years aimed at governance, security and reconstruction in Afghanistan. For more information, please refer to CIDA's website at http://www.cida.gc.ca/afghanistan-e.
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Information:
Jean-Luc Benoît
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
Backgrounder
Canada’s New Government is reinforcing its development commitment to the Afghan province of Kandahar by supporting a number of new projects to help Kandaharis gain greater access to health services and community development. These new projects build on major funding announced in February 2007 by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to accelerate the reconstruction and development process.
World Health Organization ($17.5 million)
Helping to Eliminate Polio and Tuberculosis
Eliminating polio in Afghanistan requires mass immunization of all children under the age of five and as a result of Canada’s contribution, there is progress being made. In 2006, the number of children in rural Afghanistan aged 12 to 23 months receiving the full dosage of polio vaccine was up to 70%; 31 polio cases were reported in 2006, and so far in 2007 only 7 cases have been reported.
Building on Canada’s 2006 contribution of $5 million to the World Health Organization (WHO) to implement the Polio Eradication Initiative, the Government of Canada is contributing another $17.5 million to ensure approximately 7.3 million children receive immunizations up to March 2009.
Canada’s contribution will also provide the WHO with continued support to implement the National Tuberculosis (TB) Control Program. This program will focus on building the capacity of the Afghan Ministry of Public Health’s staff through training and technical assistance, drug management, improved disease surveillance and technical monitoring activities. Recent statistics demonstrate encouraging, positive trends. The percentage of children 12 to 23 months of age in rural Afghanistan who received the vaccine to protect against tuberculosis increased from an estimated 56.5 in 2003 to 70.2 in 2006.
While the Polio Eradication Initiative and Tuberculosis Control Programme are national in scope, both initiatives have a special focus on Afghanistan's Southern Region, including Kandahar.
National Solidarity Program ($10 million)
Strengthening Local Governance and Community Development
The National Solidarity Program (NSP) is the Government of Afghanistan’s flagship program for local governance and community development. The largest community development program in the history of the country, the NSP has empowered the grassroots of Afghan society by facilitating the establishment of locally-elected governance bodies in villages across the country. These bodies, called Community Development Councils (CDCs), are helping lead their communities through processes to identify, plan, implement and monitor their own development projects.
The results achieved to date have been remarkable. As of June 2007, more than 17,500 CDCs had been elected, including more than 520 in Kandahar, and more than 12,700 projects had been completed, including more than 540 in Kandahar. These projects have provided communities with much-needed access to basic services and supporting infrastructure like wells, irrigation systems, rural roads, clinics, schools and electricity.
The $10 million announced today have been earmarked for Kandahar-specific NSP projects.
Kandahar Local Initiatives Program ($5 million)
Addressing Local Community Needs
The Kandahar Local Initiatives Program (KLIP) has been designed as a responsive and flexible programming mechanism that will give Canada’s Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) the ability to respond rapidly and positively to project proposals from development organizations and local institutions seeking to address immediate community needs.
A two-year (2007-2008) initiative with a budget of $5 million, the KLIP will deliver small-scale, quick action projects in three general areas:
Implementing local reconstruction and development initiatives;
Building the capacity of government institutions and civil society organizations; and,
Assisting the Afghan Government to ensure that national development and reconstruction programs in Kandahar province are bringing tangible improvements to people’s lives.
UNICEF ($10 million)
Improving Maternal and Infant Health Care
Maternal and infant health care is a critical issue in Afghanistan. Canada is committed to working with our partners, and building upon existing initiatives, to help ensure better health services for mothers and their children. This three-year initiative, with funding totaling $10 million, will help address gaps in maternal health services in the southern region. It includes:
Improving access to emergency obstetric and maternal care in Mirwais Hospital, the adjacent nursing school and the Maternity Waiting Home in Kandahar City, as well provincial and district hospitals in the southern region.
Training for health care professionals towards improving the care of sick children in Kandahar and Uruzgan provinces.
Support to the Afghanistan Ministry of Public Health, and to the National Midwifery Education and Accreditation Board, to increase the number, quality and deployment of trained midwives in rural areas.
Rapid Response Health Fund ($2.5 million)
Providing Immediate Health Care
The ability to address immediate health needs, particularly in an area affected by insurgent activity, is a key element to improving health services in Kandahar province. This fund, totaling $2.5 million, will be implemented through Canada’s PRT and will enable local NGOs and institutions to address immediate, local health care priorities.
