July 29, 2014 – Winnipeg, Manitoba
Check Against Delivery
Hello, and thank you for joining us.
It is great to have finally made it out to Manitoba.
I think John was among the first people to call after the shuffle last summer to get me out here to see the great work you guys are doing.
And he wasn’t wrong.
The work and dedication of individual Canadians like you form the back bone of our development policies.
As you probably know, the Prime Minister has made maternal, newborn and child health Canada’s top development priority.
And he has the country behind him.
Together, we stood up and said we cannot stand idly by while women and children around the world suffer and die from largely preventable causes.
And under-nutrition is one of the leading causes.
In fact, almost half the deaths children under the age of five could have been prevented with access to nutritious food and lifesaving vitamins or minerals.
There is no doubt we have made significant progress since 1990.
Many more women are surviving pregnancy and childbirth.
And many more children are living to celebrate their fifth birthday.
But we still have much to do.
Especially if we are to reach our ultimate goal: eliminating the preventable deaths of women and children.
That is why what you are doing here is so important.
Because this is not simply a health story.
This is a development story.
It is a human story.
And it is a story that desperately needs our attention.
That is why, today, I am pleased to announce that Canada is contributing $20 million to a project to prevent acute and chronic under-nutrition in children.
We know the results of under-nutrition are dire and permanent.
It is crucial that children receive the necessary nutrition in the first 1,000 days of life.
This precious period determines whether they will have the strength to reach their full mental and physical potential.
This project will promote optimal feeding practices for infants and young children.
It will help parents and caregivers access nutrient-rich foods.
It will generate knowledge and inform global, regional, and national policies to scale up nutrition.
And it will help to develop best practices in treating severe acute malnutrition.
Investing in nutrition is one of the most cost-effective means of improving the health of women and children.
This is why Canada is one of the world’s largest donors to basic nutrition programs.
And our commitment in this area will build momentum in the global effort to save millions of lives.
Saving every woman and every child is within arm’s reach.
Our Government will continue to scale up what works.
Focus on results.
And build our programs on a solid foundation of accountability.
A primary pillar is increasing our efforts on nutrition.
We need to sustain the gains we have made.
But more importantly, we must move the bar higher on a number of critical fronts.
We know the symptoms.
We have diagnosed the problem.
And we have the solutions at hand.
The last leg of this journey will be the toughest.
But it will also be the most critical and most rewarding.
Opportunities for dialogue—like the one we are having here today—are key.
Together, we will look to new solutions.
Involve new partners.
And ensure our $3.5 billion investment is producing results.
These consultations will contribute directly to Canadian efforts.
We can reach our goal.
Thanks in no small part to your efforts and contributions.
Thank you.
