Canada continues to demonstrate leadership in engaging a wide range of stakeholders to find innovative ways to finance development efforts
February 28, 2015 - Washington, D.C. - Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada
The Honourable Christian Paradis, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, concluded a two-day visit to Washington to help advance Canada’s international development priorities. The Minister met with representatives from the U.S. Department of State, key financing partners and Canadian private sector representatives from various industries, including health, mining, biotech, sustainable technology, infrastructure and energy.
During his visit, Minister Paradis engaged with World Bank President Jim Yong Kim on maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) and the Global Financing Facility (GFF), announced on the margins of the UN General Assembly in September 2014. The GFF will provide the financial infrastructure to mobilize the domestic and international capital required to sustain and scale up health services for women and children in developing countries. Minister Paradis also attended a round-table discussion with the World Bank and a Canadian private sector delegation aimed at strengthening their mutual relationship so that Canadian firms can make an effective contribution to the Bank’s development efforts.
“The World Bank Group, and international financial institutions more broadly, are major players in the development landscape,” said Minister Paradis. “They are active in all developing countries and across a wide range of sectors. I see promising windows for partnership with Canadian businesses—notably in the area of maternal, newborn and child health, which is Canada’s top development priority.”
While in Washington, Minister Paradis also met with Heather Higginbottom, Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, U.S. Department of State, and Elizabeth Littlefield, President and CEO, Overseas Private Investment Corporation. The discussion centred on the importance of forging new, blended partnerships to address funding gaps for development, and ensuring that MNCH remains a prominent feature of the global post-2015 development agenda. The need for a stronger focus on strengthening civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems was emphasized. Registering vital life events such as pregnancies, births, deaths, and causes of death is key to making sure that women, adolescents and children are able to exercise their rights and access life-saving services, including health care.
“It has become increasingly evident that to advance development objectives and to reach development goals, we must re-evaluate how we do development,” added Minister Paradis. “I am proud of our government’s role in creating the Global Financing Facility. The facility is a concrete step toward ensuring that we are able to sustainably finance efforts to improve the health of women and children around the world because it leverages funds from all sources, including the private sector.”
Canada is committed to working with a wide range of stakeholders, including the private sector and multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, to find innovative solutions to pressing development challenges and to deliver concrete results for those most in need.
Maxime Robert
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of International Development and La Francophonie
343-203-6238
maxime.robert@international.gc.ca
Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada
343-203-7700
media@international.gc.ca
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