NEWS RELEASES

November 12, 2006 (9:45 a.m. EST)
No. 133

CANADA’S NEW GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES OVER $40 MILLION FOR MICROFINANCE PROJECTS IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD

The Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, and the Honourable Josée Verner, Minister of International Cooperation and Minister for La Francophonie and Official Languages, today announced more than $40 million to help poor people in developing countries access formal financial services to improve their own economic and social well-being. The announcement was made at the 2006 Global Microcredit Summit in Halifax.

“Around the world, the power of microfinance is transforming lives,” said Minister MacKay. “It is leading to better prospects for families and communities—improved health, education and local economies—by giving people an opportunity to have a stake in their futures and countries. Canada’s new government is a leader in microfinancing in Afghanistan, which is part of our efforts to foster self-reliance. Microcredit is helping Afghans build the road to freedom and democracy.”

“Canada supports microfinance as an important tool for development,” said Minister Verner. “It gives poor people, especially women, the opportunity to access essential financial services such as savings accounts and micro-loans, so that they can start and build their own businesses, and thereby provide for themselves and their families.”

Today’s funding will be provided to three partners whose programs have already been achieving significant results:

•         Développement international Desjardins: $19.85 million for programs that strengthen community financial sectors in 25 developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. An additional $1.3 million is being provided for financial and technical assistance that will rebuild tsunami-affected regions, in partnership with SANASA (Thrift and Credit Co-operative Movement in Sri Lanka).

•         Canadian Co-operative Association: $19.5 million for programs to support the development of credit unions and cooperatives in less developed countries.

•         Oxfam-Québec: close to $150,000 for microenterprise institutions in Burkina Faso and Benin, and $145,000 to improve microfinance services in Nicaragua, particularly for women.

For more information on Canada’s microfinance programs, please visit the CIDA website at http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/CIDAWEB/acdicida.nsf/En/RAC-1110131744-PG5.

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A backgrounder is attached.

For further information, media representatives may contact:

Foreign Affairs Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
613-995-1874
http://www.international.gc.ca

Media Relations Office
Canadian International Development Agency
819-953-6534
info@acdi-cida.gc.ca
http://www.cida.gc.ca

Backgrounder

CANADA’S NEW GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES OVER $40 MILLION FOR MICROFINANCE PROJECTS IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD

On November 12, 2006, at the Global Microcredit Summit in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada’s new government announced over $40 million in funding to three Canadian non-governmental organizations with a proven track record in microfinancing initiatives.

Développement international Desjardins (DID)

http://www.did.qc.ca/

•         $19.85 million to enhance access to financial services for the poor living in 25 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and for outreach activities in Canada. Working with local partners, DID will focus on reducing poverty through increased access to financial services, especially for women. This initiative builds on 35 years of cooperation between the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and DID. Institutions supported by CIDA and DID currently offer financial services that meet the needs of over 3 million people and have over 6,000 employees, some $750 million in savings and assets of about $1 billion.

•         $1.3 million in support for the SANASA Co-operative Network’s post-tsunami reconstruction and development efforts in Sri Lanka, which include construction and operation of four community centres, and construction of houses and playgrounds; lending and credit line services for the most vulnerable; and reconstruction of financial data lost during the tsunami. The project will help 75 to 80 credit unions to restart their operations in the districts of Hambantota and Batticaloa. Among the SANASA federation groups are 8,440 primary financial cooperatives with 858,125 members.

Canadian Co-operative Association

http://www.coopscanada.coop/

•         $19.5 million to the continuing work of the program entitled Sustainable Livelihoods through Cooperatives. Among its activities, the program is developing and strengthening community-owned financial cooperatives to increase the self-reliance of communities, increasing food self-sufficiency and access to markets, and helping to develop locally controlled services to respond to the health, housing and educational needs of poor communities in 17 countries in Africa, Central Asia and South America.

Oxfam-Québec

http://www.oxfam.qc.ca/

•         Close to $150,000 for microenterprise institutions in Burkina Faso and Benin. Aimed at youth aged 18 to 35, the initiative will increase employment opportunities for youth in these countries through the creation of microenterprise institutions. The project will also facilitate networking in the field of entrepreneurship among youth organizations in Benin, Burkina Faso and Quebec. In Burkina Faso, the project will work with two partner organizations and will target approximately 200 youth, while in Benin, the project will work with 15 youth support groups and will target approximately 1,000 youth.

•         $145,000 to Oxfam-Québec to improve microfinance services in the department of Estelí, Nicaragua, particularly for women. This initiative will improve access to financial services, increase agricultural productivity and improve living conditions for workers. Approximately 50 farming families (especially those with female heads of household) in the municipalities of Congeda and San Juan de Limay will be reached by this project.

For further information on Canada’s microfinance programs, please visit the CIDA website at http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/CIDAWEB/acdicida.nsf/En/RAC-1110131744-PG5.