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What is international development?
Members of Groupement des femmes de Bonoua
harvesting vegetables in a rural region
of Côte d'Ivoire. The project was sponsored
by Société de coopération pour le développement
international (SOCODEVI) a Canadian
non-profit corporation supported by CIDA.
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International development, foreign aid, development cooperation. All these terms mean the same thing: helping people to help themselves. With assistance from countries like Canada, the developing countries of the world have made real progress over the past 40 years . . . .
- life expectancy has increased from 46 years to 63 years;
- child mortality rates have been cut in half;
- average incomes have doubled, despite increased population growth; and
- literacy rates have risen to 82 percent—the highest percentage in history.
But much remains to be done. More than 1 billion people still struggle to survive on less than a dollar a day. More than 800 million people go to bed hungry every night. HIV/AIDS is wiping out an entire generation in some parts of Africa. Every minute, another women dies during pregnancy or childbirth. More than 104 million children, two thirds of them girls, are not in school.
To meet these challenges, the global community met at a special session of the UN General Assembly in September 2000 to adopt the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. These goals contain specific targets to reduce poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, discrimination against women, and environmental deterioration by 2015. They are also a yardstick by which we may measure success in promoting sustainable development.
Canada is committed to helping its partners meet these targets, mainly through its $2.87-billion aid program, which is managed by the Canadian International Development Agency, or CIDA.
Why are Canadians involved?
We want to help those in need.
The Canadian aid program reflects values that all Canadians cherish: humanitarianism, social justice, generosity, and peace. Most Canadians believe that helping the less fortunate is the right thing to do, and they have overwhelmingly supported the aid program since CIDA was formed in 1968.
We know that it is in everyone’s interest.
The Bernard Meus Hospital, a pediatric
hospital in Port-au-Prince, Haiti,
provides services to the poor
and includes a maternity ward.
The hospital is supported by UNICEF
through funding from CIDA..
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As we have seen with global warming and HIV/AIDS, the problems of pollution, disease, and conflict do not respect national borders. They affect all people, no matter where they live. Solving these global concerns calls for joint action, and CIDA is working with Canadian partners, other countries, and international organizations to meet the challenges we all share.
We want to maintain a strong voice in international affairs.
Canada’s work in development, diplomacy, and peacekeeping has contributed to our reputation as a committed, constructive member of the international community. The more actively we participate, the greater a voice we will have in world affairs.
We have a lot to gain from broadening our horizons.
Strong links with other countries enrich our culture, widen our network of friends and professional contacts, and increase trade and investment.
How does CIDA contribute to international development?
CIDA’s mandate is to support sustainable development in developing countries in order to reduce poverty and contribute to a more secure, equitable, and prosperous world. The Agency’s work is concentrated in the poorest countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. CIDA also supports democratic development and economic liberalization in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union and supports international efforts to reduce threats to international and Canadian security.
CIDA’s program is based on the Millennium Development Goals, to which it contributes through the following four key areas:
The Bibi Fatimatuzahra School for orphans,
in Peshawar, Pakistan, allows orphaned
Afghan refugees to continue their education.
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CIDA priorities
Social development
- Basic education, child protection, health and nutrition, HIV/AIDS
In Tanzania, CIDA support to the non-governmental organization Marie Stopes Tanzania has helped establish and run 9 clinics and 61 outreach sites. Over the past 4 years, more than 495,000 clients visited the facilities, exceeding expectations by 25 percent. In addition, more than 25,500 people sought help for STD/HIV infections and 11,500 were treated for HIV/AIDS.
Economic well-being
- Economic growth and improved living standards for the poor through a renewed focus on agricultural development and private sector development
In Senegal, a CIDA-supported program to strengthen the PAMECAS (Programme d’appui aux mutuelles d’épargne et de crédit au Sénégal) network of savings and loans institutions has helped make credit available to the poorest of the poor, mainly rural women. The network’s institutions are now financially self-sustaining, and the value of loans is increasing on average by 39 percent a year. Membership has grown from 73,540 to 83,744, and 60 percent of the members are women.
Environmental sustainability
- Protection, conservation, and management of the environment
CIDA supports a training program
Making aid more effective
Making Aid More Effective
In September 2002, CIDA released its policy statement on strengthening aid effectiveness. Its key principles are now being implemented across the aid program:
- focus on local priorities and local ownership;
- improved coordination among donors;
- stronger partnerships;
- consistency between aid policies and other policies affecting aid, such as trade; and
- emphasis on results.
At the same time, CIDA took a number of steps to make sure that aid dollars were well-managed and achieved their intended purposes. The Agency streamlined and integrated all planning, resourcing, implementation, and evaluation to improve its reporting and account-ability to Canadians. Meanwhile in the field, CIDA, together with other donors, is supporting its partner countries in their own financial management reforms. Finally, regular monitoring and in-depth evaluations and audits throughout the life cycle of projects, programs, partners and programming areas, like gender equality, helps CIDA to keep things on track and solve problems as soon as they occur.
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in greenhouse gas emissions reduction for the oil and gas sector in Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. This program is helping companies to identify and develop greenhouse gas emission-reduction projects to be funded under the Kyoto Protocol or by other means.
Governance
- Human rights, democracy and good governance
CIDA was one of the first donors to fund the Anti-Corruption Unit in the Vice-President’s Office of the Government of Bolivia. This unit has sent a powerful message that corruption will no longer be tolerated. Complaints from the public are processed, investigated, and resolved by this unit and several cases have resulted in legal charges against public officials.
In all areas of CIDA’s work, equality between women and men is promoted and supported. CIDA also funds programs that benefit women directly. In Pakistan, CIDA-supported training programs have helped thousands of women to become involved in municipal politics, and 43,000 have won seats as councillors. Training has also helped the women to be more effective advocates for gender equality in their own communities.
How does CIDA work?
Millennium Development Goals
At the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000, world leaders agreed on a set of goals to guide and coordinate international development efforts. The Millennium Development Goals are to:
eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
achieve universal primary education
promote gender equality and empower women
reduce child mortality
improve maternal health
combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases
ensure environmental sustainability
develop a global partnership for development
These goals are linked to measurable targets, such as cutting in half the proportion of people living on less than $1 a day, halving the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water, and reducing by two thirds the mortality rate of children under five—all by 2015.
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CIDA supports the social and economic development programs of its partner countries and organizations, including governments, non-governmental organizations and institutions, community groups, businesses, and international bodies such as the World Bank and UNICEF. CIDA’s support can take many forms:
financial contributions to existing programs run by partners;direct provision of technical support such as information, skills, or equipment; dialogue with partners on issues important to Canadians, such as human rights, environmental sustainability, and more effective aid programs; andsharing of information and knowledge on development-related topics.
Programs and activities are chosen for support based on the needs and priorities of our developing-country partners, the relevance of Canadian expertise, and the availability of funds in the annual aid budget.
Where the money goes: spending in 2003–2004
Canada’s aid budget, currently less than two cents of every tax dollar, is gradually increasing by eight percent a year up to 2010 to help CIDA implement its reforms and contribute more fully to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
New directions for CIDA
Aid is becoming more effective and more focused, thanks in part to the international consensus around the development goals and in part to the reforms that are being implemented among donors and developing countries alike. Following the release of CIDA’s policy on aid effectiveness, Canada’s aid program has begun to move:
- from supporting a large number of individual, isolated projects to more integrated programs, such as a country’s national five-year plan for education;
- from funding activities based in a large number of developing countries to more concentrated programs in countries committed to poverty reduction and good government, including Bangladesh, Bolivia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Honduras, Mali, Mozambique, Senegal, and Tanzania;
- toward paying greater attention to facilitating economic growth by increased support to agriculture and rural development, and private sector development; and
- toward increasing its focus on Africa, where the needs are greatest.
Canadians from all walks of life are making a difference in the world through CIDA-supported programs and activities. For more information on Canada’s aid program, please visit:
Your Guide to Working with CIDA
Looking for Employment?
Emergencies and Disasters Abroad: How Canadians Can Help
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