On October 27, 2011, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the creation of the Canadian International Institute for Extractive Industries and Development. This announcement delivers on the Government of Canada’s commitment to support initiatives in developing countries that promote sustainable economic growth, create jobs and reduce long-term poverty.
This initiative will benefit partner countries by enhancing their capacity to manage their respective natural resources, including minerals, oil and gas.
The Canadian International Institute for Extractive Industries and Development
The newly created Canadian International Institute for Extractive Industries and Development will undertake policy research to identify best practices in extractive sector management for individual countries, and arrange technical assistance for governments and communities in developing countries through a partnership between the Federal government,Canada’s private sector and Canadian civil-society organizations. The Institute will draw on the lessons learned inCanadaon extractive sector management.
The Institute will be housed in a Canadian university that combines a strong public-policy capacity with knowledge of the extractive sector and of mining in particular. Selection of the university will be carried out through a competitive process and the successful applicant will be expected to make an in-kind contribution to the creation and operation of the Institute.
Canada's Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy
The Canadian International Institute for Extractive Industries and Development complements the Government of Canada’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Strategy for the Canadian International Extractive Sector, announced in March 2009, and Sustainable Economic Growth Strategy, announced in 2010.
The objective of the Strategy is to improve the competitive advantage of Canadian international extractive sector companies by enhancing their ability to manage social and environmental risks. The CSR Strategy is based on four pillars:
- Support capacity building initiatives in developing countries to manage the development of minerals and oil and gas, and to benefit from these resources to reduce poverty
- Promote the widely-recognized international CSR performance guidelines
- Set up the Office of the Extractive Sector CSR Counsellor
- Support the development of a CSR Centre of Excellence
Today's announcement complements four recently announced pilot projects worth approximately $26.7 million designed to reduce poverty in Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Ghana, and Burkina Faso.
For more information on Canada’s Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy for the Canadian International Extractive Sector, please visit the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade’s website (http://www.international.gc.ca/trade-agreements-accords-commerciaux/ds/csr-strategy-rse-stategie.aspx?lang=eng&view=d).
