Harper out of step with world on aid

OTTAWA - New Democrat Critic for International Cooperation, John Rafferty (Thunder Bay - Rainy River) says that this week’s call from the IMF for increased bilateral assistance to 26 highly vulnerable states is further proof the recently announced cuts to CIDA’s bilateral aid are wrongheaded and that Stephen Harper’s government is again ‘out of step’ with the rest of the world on an important issue.

“The Harper government has consistently been out of step with the world on a variety of issues, and we can now add international aid to developing countries to its growing list of foreign policy failures,” Rafferty said. “Harper is cutting funding for many, many important programs in these highly vulnerable countries. These programs would keep men and women working, children in schools, and families fed during the global economic crisis, and Canadians should be outraged by these cuts and by the fact we are now collectively turning our back on so many in need.”

In an IMF press release, Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn was quoted as saying; "Bilateral donors must ensure that aid flows are scaled up, not trimmed back." Strauss-Kahn appealed to donor countries, like Canada, that have historically provided direct assistance to what it says are 26 “highly vulnerable” states. Last week Bev Oda, the Minister for International Cooperation, announced that CIDA was drastically reorganizing its aid allotment and eliminating bilateral aid to all but 20 “priority” countries. The new CIDA policy on bilateral aid will eliminate funding for projects in ten countries deemed ‘highly vulnerable’ by the IMF - Burundi, Central African Republic, Ivory Coast, Laos, Lesotho, Liberia, Mongolia, Nigeria, Tajikistan, and Zambia.

“Last week, the Minister claimed her bilateral cuts would make Canada’s assistance ‘more effective,’ but how can she make this claim when the IMF is saying the exact opposite?” Rafferty asked. “Today’s IMF report and appeal for increased bilateral assistance shows that Minister and this government have again turned their back on the most vulnerable.”

Countries that appear on the IMF’s list of ‘highly vulnerable’ developing countries and which are ineligible for bilateral assistance from CIDA:

Albania , Angola, Armenia, Burundi, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ivory Coast, Djibouti, Kyrgyz Republic, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Lesotho, Liberia, Mauritania, Moldova, Mongolia, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & Grenadines, Tajikistan and Zambia.