© UNICEF/UNI488035/Dabaan

Report to Parliament on the Government of Canada’s International Assistance 2022-2023

ISSN 1926-3945

Table of contents

• Volume 1
  • Message from the Minister of International Development and Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • Message from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance
  • Executive summary and highlights
  • Government of Canada’s International Assistance and Official Development Assistance
    Disbursements by Organization, 2022-2023
  • An evolving international assistance landscape
  • Canada at work in the world: International assistance in action
    • Gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls
    • Human dignity: Health and nutrition
    • Human dignity: Education
    • Human dignity: Gender-responsive humanitarian action
    • Growth that works for everyone
    • Environment and climate action
    • Inclusive governance
    • Peace and security
• Volume 2
  • Introduction
  • Section A: Canada’s engagement in World Bank Group operations
    • Reporting requirements
    • Governance and representation
    • Canada’s financial contributions to the World Bank Group in 2022-2023
    • Objectives and results of Canada’s WBG trust funds
    • World Bank procurement from Canada
    • Chair’s Statements of the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the Board of Governors of the IMF (as required under the Bretton Woods Act)
  • Section B: Canada’s engagement in International Monetary Fund operations
    • Governance and representation
    • IMF resources, lending, and capacity development
    • Communiqués of the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the Board of Governors of the IMF (as required under the Bretton Woods Act)
  • Section C: Canada’s engagement in European Bank for Reconstruction and Development operations
    • Reporting requirements
    • Governance and representation
    • Benefits of EBRD membership

Volume 1

Message from the Minister of International Development and Minister of Foreign Affairs

Message from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

Executive summary and highlights

The international assistance report is the Government of Canada’s most comprehensive accounting of federal international assistance, reflecting the collective efforts of Global Affairs Canada and 20 other federal departments to deliver international assistance in partnership with a wide range of international and local partners. Canada is grateful for the ongoing collaboration, dedication and service of all its partners, particularly those working in conflict situations. 

Despite collective efforts, international assistance results that have been achieved can be minimized or even undone in the context of humanitarian disasters or disasters caused by human activity. In particular, Canada recognizes that the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan and Gaza and the impact of the Taliban’s return in Afghanistan are having a devastating effect on people and infrastructure, and, ultimately, have a negative impact on the sustainability of Canada’s international assistance investments in these regions. 

Complementing this report is Canada’s second Voluntary National Review of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) implementation, which was presented at the UN’s High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in July 2023. The 2030 Agenda provides a blueprint for addressing today’s most pressing challenges—from achieving gender equality and protecting the planet to ensuring equal access to education and health care and building more resilient economies.

Global progress toward the SDGs has been hindered in recent years by concurrent crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous and protracted conflicts, climate change, high inflation, and food insecurity. As co-chair of the SDG Advocates, Prime Minister Trudeau has been working to inspire a renewed focus on achieving the goals.

In 2022-2023, the Government of Canada continued to direct its international assistance toward the communities and people who needed it most, providing $15.5 billion to millions of people worldwide. This assistance has helped save lives and alleviate suffering by promoting gender equality, reducing poverty, and building and promoting peace and security. 

This report showcases results and stories of change achieved in 2022-2023 by partners around the world. The report is organized in line with the Feminist International Assistance Policy (FIAP) and its 6 action areas policies: Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women and Girls, Human Dignity (which includes Health and Nutrition, Education and Gender-Responsive Humanitarian Action), Growth that Works for Everyone, Environment and Climate Action, Inclusive Governance, and Peace and Security.

Protecting the rights of women and girls and enabling them to be agents of change is a powerful way to build a more peaceful, inclusive and prosperous world. Last year, almost all of Canada’s bilateral international development assistance either targeted or integrated gender equality. In 2022-2023, Canada’s international development assistance helped partner organizations to make strides to ensure that more women and girls can access the health services they need and the education they deserve. Canada supported initiatives that strengthened local partners’ ability to actively engage in government-led consultations on sexual and reproductive health and rights—and to influence policy change. One in 3 adolescent girls living in poverty has never set foot in a classroom. Canada has continued to help address this inequity by working to transform education systems in developing countries. For instance, Canada is helping to build stronger education systems in more than 90 partner countries through the Global Partnership for Education.

By partnering with experienced and trusted humanitarian organizations, the Government of Canada continued to respond to increased humanitarian needs around the world in 2022-2023. Through its work with UN partners, NGOs and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Canada provided more than $1.3 billion in humanitarian assistance in 2022-2023 and helped to assist and protect some 29 million refugees. Canada has continued to help enhance the economic well-being and economic rights of the poorest, most marginalized and most vulnerable people, particularly women and girls. For example, in 2022-2023, International Assistance Innovation Program investments helped create jobs for women by providing financing to micro-, small and medium enterprises in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

Canada’s international assistance also directly supported people affected by natural disasters caused by climate change. For instance, Canada’s climate change program with the International Finance Corporation has improved access to renewable energy for more than 4 million people, reducing CO2-equivalent emissions by 2 megatonnes annually. Canada continues to advocate for and promote the protection of human rights and inclusive democratic governance through initiatives like the LGBTQ2I international assistance program, which aims to improve the human rights and socio-economic inclusion of LGBTQ2I+ populations.

In 2022-2023, Canada also supported approximately 716 projects in 124 countries through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives and under each action area of the FIAP. The world is currently experiencing the highest number of violent conflicts since the Second World War and Canada’s efforts to build a safer world are more important than ever. In 2022-2023, Canada continued its efforts to push for the integration of the Vancouver Principles on Peacekeeping and the Prevention of the Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers in all UN policies and training materials. This has strengthened UN personnel’s ability to protect and promote children’s rights in armed conflict.

Although Canada’s international development efforts in 2022-2023 have helped change millions of lives for the better, there is still much more to be done, and it will require Canada’s partners and the work they do around the globe. For the latest evaluation reports on Canadian international development assistance, we invite you to visit Global Affairs Canada’s Program and project evaluation web page. For more information on Canada’s international assistance efforts, we invite you to visit the Canadian funding for international initiatives web page.

Government of Canada’s International Assistance and Official Development Assistance Disbursements by Organization, 2022-2023

The Government of Canada disbursed $15.5 billion in international assistance in 2022-2023, of which official development assistance (ODA) made up 76% or $11.8 billion. In 2022-2023, more than 2,900 international assistance projects were active around the world. Each project varied in size, complexity and duration. Below you will find Canada’s international assistance efforts in 2022-2023 listed by action area. The Statistical Report on International Assistance provides further details on international assistance and ODA expenditures.

Amount disbursed ($ million) by each of the 21 federal organizations:

An evolving international assistance landscape

After decades of unprecedented global development progress, the compounding effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and conflicts around the world have stalled and even reversed many development gains. The climate crisis and ongoing conflicts are contributing to high levels of global hunger. In 2022, around 735 million people were suffering from hunger—122 million more than before the COVID-19 pandemic. In the face of these challenges, Canada is helping to build partnerships and more resilient communities to support development outcomes for the poorest and most marginalized populations. For example, we are focused on delivering international assistance that supports climate-smart food systems to address the needs of those who are disproportionately impacted by food insecurity.

Rising authoritarianism in a number of countries is threatening democratic institutions, shrinking civic space and increasing political polarization. Similarly, progress to promote gender equality and human rights has stalled and is even backsliding in many countries and regions. Canada and other like-minded governments and partners are working on many fronts to counter these trends. At the country level, Canada is supporting change-makers that amplify the voices of marginalized people, and in multilateral institutions, Canada promotes the core values of human rights and inclusion.

World events over the last 12 months are a cause for concern in terms of sustaining the results of Canada’s development programming. Results achieved in different contexts can, unfortunately, be undone by humanitarian and environmental disasters or those caused by human activity. The ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan and Gaza and the impact of the Taliban’s return in Afghanistan are having a devastating effect on people and infrastructure, and, ultimately, have a negative impact on the sustainability of Canada’s international assistance. It is worth noting, however, that while international assistance results may be limited because projects have been suspended, previous activities and results can and often do still have a lasting effect on people’s lives that cannot be undone by singular events.

Changing donor landscape

Growing inequalities within and across countries are driving questions about who shapes and benefits from international assistance. This, in turn, is creating demand from developing countries for reforms to international institutions, many of which have not changed since their creation soon after the Second World War. These countries point to long-standing structural inequities in the international multilateral system that limit their voice, influence and interests. As a result, there is a push for developing countries to have a stronger voice in these institutions.

Of particular concern for donors and developing countries alike is the current state of the international financial architecture—the governance arrangements that safeguard the stability of the global monetary and financial systems. Institutions such as the World Bank Group and regional development banks have come under increasing criticism for failing to respond adequately to the financial needs of developing countries. Canada recognizes that reforms to multilateral systems are needed to support more inclusive and sustainable development. To this end, Canada’s approach to the changing international assistance landscape recognizes that aid effectiveness is built on strong partnerships that foster collaboration and inclusion and promote innovative solutions to meet current global needs and ensure that we leave no one behind.

© UNFPA, Egypt

Canada at work in the world: International assistance in action

The Feminist International Assistance Policy (FIAP) is the overarching policy that guides Canada’s international assistance programming. It includes 6 action area policies: Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women and Girls, Human Dignity (which includes Health and Nutrition, Education and Gender-Responsive Humanitarian Action), Growth that Works for Everyone, Environment and Climate Action, Inclusive Governance, and Peace and Security. Canada’s international assistance programming is designed to achieve concrete results in support of partner countries’ needs and policy priorities, and in line with the 2030 Agenda, the sustainable development goals and global agreements on development effectiveness. Canada takes an integrated approach to delivering international assistance that complements Canada’s global trade and diplomacy efforts.

Canada’s international assistance is delivered through projects that are implemented by a range of Canadian and international partners. When designing projects, Global Affairs Canada and its partners are guided by the FIAP and its 6 action area policies. Understanding how an international assistance project should be able to achieve results in principle is much different from actually realizing outcomes on the ground. That said, Canada’s international assistance is contributing to sustainable development, project by project. Over time, the goal is to use these annual reports to aggregate project results and provide a more comprehensive accounting of results achieved by sector and geography. In this report, the terms results and outcomes are used interchangeably.

It is important to note that this report is not designed to provide an exhaustive accounting of all activities or results achieved through Canada’s international assistance investments. Instead, it showcases select results achieved in 2022-2023. Overall, in 2022-2023, Canada’s federal departments and agencies disbursed $15.5 billion to 2,900 projects (for more information, please consult the DevData Dashboard). Information on the projects being implemented through Canadian international assistance efforts can be found on the Project Browser web page.

The sections that follow include a selection of the results achieved through Canada’s international assistance during 2022-2023, which are presented by FIAP action area and their associated expected outcomes and paths to action. Each section of the report includes an overview of the challenges to which Canada’s international assistance was responding, including key Canadian investments, followed by examples of outcomes achieved in the countries or regions in which Canada provided assistance. Stories of change are presented throughout the report to highlight examples of how Canada has had a direct impact on individuals’ lives.

© RCMP, Australia

Strengthening women’s rights organizations

For example, through the Women’s Voice and Leadership (WVL) Program alone, Canada provided more than 1,100 women’s rights and LGBTQI+ organizations in some 30 countries with flexible core funding and capacity building in areas that are essential to organizational sustainability, such as gender-responsive financial management, resource mobilization, intersectional approaches to operations and programs, and self-care programs to help address the stress, trauma and mental health experienced by women and LGBTQI+ groups. Projects funded by the program in 2022-2023 reported influencing some 150 policies, laws and frameworks at multiple levels, from local organizations to national institutions.

In Bangladesh ($6.8 million, 2019-2024), the support WVL provided to a trans women-led organization helped the hijra/transgender community to overcome barriers to political involvement. As a direct result of this support, the community gained the right to stand as self-identified candidates in elections at the national level.

In 2022-2023, the Equality Fund initiative ($300 million, 2019-2035)—a consortium of the Equality Fund, World University Service Canada and the Toronto Foundation—provided $20.5 million to 95 women’s rights organizations and feminist funds across 84 developing countries, with funding further distributed to an additional 501 grantee partners. This enhanced women’s rights organizations’ capacity to advance gender equality and women’s rights in ODA-eligible countries. For example, in November 2022, the Honduran government agreed to make partial reforms to its policy banning emergency contraception by legalizing its use for victims of sexual violence. The Centro de Derechos de Mujeres (CDM) had been challenging the ban on this contraception since it was first enacted in 2009, registering complaints through the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Through its multi-year equality fund contribution, which it used to support its long-term advocacy strategy, the CDM’s early advocacy efforts enabled it to lead the strategic working group that made these legislative changes possible.

Through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI), Canada supported local women’s rights organizations that are fighting to prevent and respond to SGBV and other harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage, and female genital mutilation and cutting. This past year, the CFLI helped 675 organizations in more than 100 countries to increase their capacity to manage and deliver GBA Plus-informed projects. For example, the CFLI provided funding to the Centre for Rights Education and Awareness (over $70,000, 2022-2023) to implement a project to improve access to justice and healing for SGBV survivors in remote regions of Kenya. This project provided legal support to more than 2,300 SGBV survivors and psychosocial services to some 670 survivors. This improved help-seeking behaviour among survivors through awareness activities and enhanced accountability among duty bearers. Another example is support to a local NGO in Guinea-Bissau (nearly $22,000, 2022 -2023) that is working to prevent early and forced marriages. Through training, radio debates and awareness campaigns, 1,320 young women, girls, boys and parents learned about the consequences of early and forced marriage and how to prevent it. This awareness raising and increased support for activists aim to help decrease the number of early and forced marriages in the community.

Supporting policy-making that promotes gender equality

In 2022-2023, Canada contributed to more participatory and accountable evidence-based policy-making and program delivery for gender equality by supporting and building the capacities of public and civil society stakeholders. Strong public institutions, gender statistics and accountability mechanisms involving civil society stakeholders play an important role in ensuring policies, laws, budgets, programs and services actively advance gender equality and sustain the economic, political and social empowerment of women and girls in all their diversity.

For example, with Canada’s support, the Strengthening the Rights of Indigenous and Other Discriminated Women in Guatemala project (OHCHR, $2.5 million, 2018-2023) made significant progress in terms of protecting the human rights of Indigenous women weavers, Indigenous midwives and adolescent girl survivors of a fire in a state-run home. A legislative proposal to Congress in September 2022 on the protection of Indigenous women weavers’ collective intellectual property rights introduced a legal mandate for safeguarding ancestral patterns. Efforts addressing discrimination against Indigenous midwives resulted in the National Midwives Policy’s Action Plan 2021-2025, congressional approval of a national midwives’ day, a stipend and a historic court decision in their favour. Progress continues in terms of seeking justice and dignified reparations for the survivors of and the families of those affected by the 2017 fire in a state-run children’s home and implementing the 2016 Sepur Zarco sexual violence and slavery case sentence, which is focused on psychosocial measures and dignified reparations for survivors.

In Lebanon, Canada supported the Integrating Gender Equality into Lebanese Institutions project (UNDP, nearly $3.9 million, 2020-2024), which emphasized the importance of gender mainstreaming and aimed to integrate gender equality considerations into program delivery and advocacy efforts, among other aspects. Through this project, Lebanon Crisis Response Plan partners’ capacity to conduct gender-responsive policy-making is being strengthened in order to ensure that humanitarian and development efforts consider the experiences, needs and contributions of women and girls. Close to 30 capacity-building and mentoring sessions were delivered to 756 Lebanon Crisis Response Plan partners’ staff, including 572 women, 182 men and 2 gender-fluid individuals. By strengthening the capacity of partner organizations and engaging in advocacy efforts, Lebanon Crisis Response Plan partners are now better equipped to deliver a more gender-sensitive response to the impact of the crisis and promote gender equality and women’s empowerment in Lebanon.

Stories of change

© UNICEF/UNI183025/Nesbitt, Ethiopia

Human dignity: Health and nutrition

Sustainable Development Goals

Zero hunger

Good health and well-being

Gender equality

Clean water and sanitation

Health and Nutrition are core components of the Human Dignity action area not only because they are basic human rights, but also because investing in health and nutrition is essential to achieving gender equality, reducing poverty and advancing sustainable development, thereby ensuring that people not only survive, but thrive.

In 2022-2023, achieving universal health coverage was more important than ever, as the cost of health services remained out of reach for many. Repressive laws and practices limiting sexual and reproductive rights, as well as concerning levels of insecurity in fragile and conflict-affected states, continued to limit women’s and girls’ access to basic health services, and their ability to exercise their rights, including the right to bodily autonomy. Climate change and global crises contributed to rising global malnutrition rates, especially in children under the age of 5.

In this context, and building on its historical leadership in health and nutrition globally, Canada is working with Canadian and global stakeholders to tackle these major challenges through new and ongoing investments. The current phase of Canada’s leadership in global health is guided by its 10-Year Commitment to Global Health and Rights (2020-2030). Key global partners such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Gavi the Vaccine Alliance and the Global Financing Facility (GFF) support country-led integrated health systems that target women, children and adolescents, with comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and nutrition as core components.

For example, Canada contributed $90 million to the GFF in 2022-2023, including $40 million to restore and sustain primary health care systems through COVID-19 Essential Health Services grants. Canada also actively helped strengthen global pandemic preparedness through support to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations ($20 million, 2022-2023) and, as announced by the Prime Minister at the G20 Summit in November 2022, to the World Bank-hosted Pandemic Fund ($50 million). Canada remains a leader in providing funding to treat and prevent malnutrition through close collaboration with partners such as Nutrition International and the UN World Food Programme (WFP).

In 2022-2023, Canada invested $2,256 million in international assistance toward health and nutrition activities, of which $2,223 million was official development assistance. Policy and programming work in this action area ultimately aims at contributing to improved health and equal enjoyment of health rights for those experiencing poverty, marginalization and/or vulnerability in countries where Canada engages. To do this, Canada has invested in a range of projects and initiatives that seek to achieve the following expected outcomes under the health and nutrition path to action:

• increased use of gender-responsive quality health services
• improved healthy behaviours and practices supportive of women’s autonomy and decision making
• strengthened equal protection and promotion of sexual, reproductive and health rights of citizens by governments and key stakeholders

Selected examples of outcomes achieved under the above-mentioned path to action are presented below.

Achievements in the spotlight

Increased use of gender-responsive quality health services

Ensuring women can access family planning services supports overall health outcomes and empowers women to make decisions about their own bodies.

In 2022-2023, Canada’s international assistance also helped non-governmental partner organizations to ensure that more women and girls in all their diversity have access to the health services they need. For example, Canada’s funding of over $3 million in 2022-2023 to Oxfam Canada’s Sexual Health and Empowerment project ($17.9 million, 2018-2024) helped reduce the stigma associated with sexual health and contraceptive use in 6 conflict-affected and underserved areas of the Philippines. By training health care workers on family planning counselling and how to undertake community discussions to promote healthy sexual and reproductive behaviours, the project successfully increased the number of people using contraceptives by more than 3,800, with a total of 61,453 people accessing contraceptives in partner health facilities in 2022-2023. In Tanzania, Canada also supports Marie Stopes Tanzania in the Owning their Reproductive Health Choices: Tanzanian Women and Girls Decide project ($15.5 million, 2018-2022), working in poor rural and peri-urban communities to provide family planning outreach services to those without access to health care facilities. Thanks to Canada’s $2.5-million investment in 2022-2023, Marie Stopes Tanzania is using outreach vehicles and scooters, among other results, so that nurses are able to reach over 181,500 clients to provide contraceptive services, filling the service gap for people living in the hardest-to-reach regions of the country.

In 2022-2023, Canada, also funded smaller-scale, very-localized and targeted initiatives, helping to promote sexual and reproductive health and rights through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI). For example, the CFLI provided $45,000 in funding to the Grenada Planned Parenthood Association (2022-2023) to support an initiative that provided 1,070 people with access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and gender-based violence (GBV) services. Through this project, 19 nurses received training in inserting and removing intrauterine devices ( IUDs) and in cryotherapy treatment, 402 clients were provided SRH and GBV services in satellite clinics and 117 people accessed critical HIV testing. Initiatives like this one have improved the ability of local organizations in Grenada to provide quality, inclusive health services for those experiencing poverty, marginalization and/or vulnerability. By working with government agencies and international, regional and local development partners, the association amplified its reach and services, and therefore reinforced meaningful and long-lasting relationships and results.

In Bangladesh, some 3,700 women die every year as a result of pregnancy complications, yet most of these deaths are preventable. Over the past 5 years, Canada’s support to UNICEF’s Improving Maternal, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Bangladesh project ($35 million, 2017-2022) has helped ensure that obstetric services at the country’s health facilities meet quality standards, especially when dealing with complications during delivery. Over the course of the 5-year project, the number of women who have delivered their babies at a health facility has increased from 38% to 47%. Almost 123,000 women were given life-saving treatments for complications such as eclampsia, and the project has contributed to a significant reduction in the number of women who die during childbirth in Bangladesh each year.

In 2022-2023, Canada contributed to the World Bank’s Regional Disease Surveillance Systems Enhancement (REDISSE) initiative ($20 million, 2016-2023). This initiative, led by the West African Health Organization (WAHO), aimed to strengthen national and regional disease surveillance and the response to disease outbreaks in West Africa. WAHO, in close collaboration with relevant country-level health authorities and implementing partners, helped strengthen disease surveillance systems at the health-district level by establishing 107 centres for epidemiological surveillance in 10 West African countries.

Canada also supports access to health services to eliminate 3 key infectious diseases through global initiatives such as the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria (the Global Fund). Since 2002, efforts to improve access to antiretroviral therapy, TB treatment and mosquito nets, and to build stronger health systems have contributed to a significant decline in deaths caused by AIDS (-70%), TB (-21%) and malaria (-26%). In 2022-2023, Canada contributed $333.9 million to the Global Fund, and in September 2022, Canada announced a $1.21-billion contribution to the Global Fund for the 2023-2025 replenishment period for the response to HIV, TB and malaria, as well as an allocation of $100 million to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 through the Global Fund’s COVID-19 Response Mechanism.

In 2022-2023, Canada continued to support equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines around the world, including through the delivery of approximately 14 million surplus vaccine doses to 15 countries through COVAX and bilateral agreements. These in-kind contributions were jointly facilitated by the Public Health Agency of Canada, Global Affairs Canada and Public Services and Procurement Canada.

Improved healthy behaviours and practices supportive of women’s autonomy and decision making

Bolivia has one of the highest adolescent pregnancy rates in Latin America and many young people lack basic knowledge about sexual health and rights. UNICEF has been tackling this issue by introducing comprehensive sexuality education in schools and communities to ensure that adolescents and parents understand the importance of healthy sexuality and GBV. Thanks in part to Canada’s support, UNICEF’s Empowering Adolescents to Prevent Unwanted Pregnancies, HIV and Violence project (over $9.1 million, 2018-2023) succeeded in having a comprehensive sexuality education course introduced into Bolivia’s national education curriculum and approved by the Ministry of Education. Through this project, the course has been taught in 76 schools and 537 youth clubs to date. Over the course of the project, girls’ level of knowledge regarding contraceptive use, HIV and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) has increased by 20% (from 58% to 78%), allowing them to make better informed decisions about their body.

Breastfeeding for the first 6 months of an infant’s life has lifelong health benefits. However, many women encounter challenges with breastfeeding, and, in many parts of the world, there are few resources to help them overcome these difficulties. Through its support to Nutrition International ($293 million, 2019-2026), Canada is helping to promote recommended breastfeeding practices and to

distribute essential micronutrients, such as vitamin A, iron and folic acid. Canada’s Fund for Innovation and Transformation - FIT ($18 million, 2018-2024), implemented by the Manitoba Council for International Cooperation, supported a sub-project that focused on overcoming this health challenge and contributed to women’s choice to breastfeed. Last year, LISS Technologies tested easy-to-use, low-cost, solar-powered breast pumps for mothers with breastfeeding challenges in Somalia. Following a 10-month testing period by women using the breast pumps, 65% were still exclusively breastfeeding compared to 37% who did not use the pumps.

Cultural taboos, poverty and a lack of basic services like toilets and access to feminine hygiene products affect the ability of women and girls in all their diversity to participate fully in their communities. But Canada’s support of the HerWASH: Menstrual health for sexual and reproductive health and rights project (over $4.8 million, 2019-2023) led by WaterAid Canada is helping to tackle the stigma around menstruation in Burkina Faso, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Pakistan. The project supported 24,380 community members in 2022-2023 with messaging on menstrual health. By helping schools and health centres to provide latrines and sanitary stations, and local small enterprises to make menstrual hygiene products, women and girls can practic e menstrual hygiene outside of the home, allowing them to attend school and participate in community life while menstruating.

Strengthened equal protection and promotion of sexual, reproductive and health rights of citizens by governments and key stakeholders

In countries around the world, and in Latin America in particular, hard-won gains in terms of sexual and reproductive rights are being eroded. But Canada’s assistance has influenced policies to stop this backsliding. Initiatives such as the Rights from the Start project (over $10.8 million, 2020-2024) led by Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights are strengthening the ability of key in-country partners to actively engage in government-led consultations on SRHR policies and programs and bring about policy change. For instance, in Ecuador, Canada’s partnership with Centro Ecuatoriano para la Promoción y Acción de la Mujer (CEPAM) facilitated advocacy efforts on comprehensive care and legalized abortion in cases of rape. CEPAM’s key recommendations were approved and have been integrated into the country’s national health policies.

Global health research

As Canada’s federal funding agency for health research, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) also supports global health research. In 2022-2023, through its researcher-initiated programming and targeted investments, the agency invested more than $15 million in global health research that was eligible as international assistance. CIHR’s global health research funding focuses on 3 key areas: sex and gender, non-communicable diseases and health emergencies. For example, in 2022-2023, along with its partners, the International Development Research Centre and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, CIHR committed $9 million over 4 years to the Women Rise initiative, a $22-million research program that supports women’s health and economic empowerment to ensure an equitable COVID-19 recovery.

In 2022-2023, under the umbrella of the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases, CIHR invested $10 million over 6 years to research common risk factors across noncommunicable diseases to support prevention. CIHR committed $3.8 million to a $5.8-million research program over 2 years to respond to mpox outbreaks in Canada and Africa. In addition, CIHR contributed $1.5 million and was one of the Canadian funding agencies that contributed to a WHO/Ugandan Ministry of Health-led clinical trial to assess the safety and efficacy of 3 candidate vaccines against Ebola. This research will help increase the availability of and access to life-saving interventions in the case of any future Ebola outbreaks.candidate vaccines against Ebola. This research will help increase the availability of and access to life-saving interventions in the case of any future Ebola outbreaks.

Stories of change

© UNICEF/UN0773364/Souleiman, Syria

Human dignity: Education

The world is facing an unprecedented crisis in education. More children and youth are out of school than ever before and the most marginalized are being disproportionately affected, particularly girls and displaced children. In fact, 1 in 3 adolescent girls from the poorest households around the world has never even set foot in a classroom, and 51% of school-aged refugee children—7.5 million children globally—are estimated to be out of school. There were an estimated 2 million more girls out of school in 2022 than there were in 2021. The crisis is largely a result of the exclusion of girls and women from education in Afghanistan, population growth, increased disruption and displacement due to conflict and climate crises, and a lack of re-entry into education after pandemic school closures.

This contribution includes $27.5 million for ECW’s Multi-Year Resilience Programme in Bangladesh, which is addressing the education needs of Rohingya refugees and host communities, reaching more than 350,000 children and youth (aged 3 to 18) with educational opportunities.

The education action area recognizes that the right to a quality education is a catalyst to improving human dignity and a means through which other rights are realized. Barriers to accessing education persist, especially for women and girls, and particularly those in crisis, fragile and conflict-affected situations. Underlying Canada’s approach to education is the belief that children, youth and adults will be more likely to successfully complete quality primary and secondary education and have better chances of employment if education is accessible, safe, gender-sensitive and innovative, and if it addresses the needs of marginalized and conflict-affected groups.

In 2022-2023, Canada invested $678 million in international assistance in the education action area, $550 million of which was official development assistance. Policy and programming work in this action area aims at contributing to enhanced equal learning outcomes for girls and boys and equal employability of youth, women and men, particularly for the poorest, most vulnerable and most marginalized, in developing countries, conflict-affected and fragile situations and humanitarian settings where Canada engages. To do this, Canada has invested in a range of projects and initiatives that seek to achieve outcomes under the following paths to action:

• improve gender-responsive quality education systems
• increase access to gender-responsive, demand-driven, quality skills development
• improve gender-responsive quality education and skills development in conflict-affected and fragile states

Selected examples of outcomes achieved under the above-mentioned paths to action are presented below.

Achievements in the spotlight

Improving gender-responsive quality education systems

Canada is a key leader in supporting global efforts to strengthen national education systems, particularly through its support of multilateral partners and national ministries of education. For instance, in 2022, Canada’s support for Education Cannot Wait benefited 2 million children and adolescents, helping them to access education in host countries; 50% of these children were girls, 21% were refugees, 14% were internally displaced people and 65% were other crisis-affected children.

Canada is also helping to mobilize partnerships and investments that transform education systems in developing countries. Through funding ($300 million, 2021-2026) to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), Canada is supporting the organization’s work to build stronger education systems in more than 90 countries. In 2022-2023, GPE’s efforts impacted 107 million students; it distributed 56 million textbooks, trained more than 675,000 teachers and built and/or renovated 8,500 classrooms.

Last year, GPE also successfully helped to transform education systems in partner countries through its Knowledge and Innovation Exchange (KIX). Implemented by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), KIX funds research and facilitates knowledge sharing among country stakeholders to enhance their education systems using relevant evidence and actionable research. For example, in Yemen, participants in the KIX EAP Learning Cycle used these tools to identify policy options—such as providing incentives to families and offering flexible alternative learning programs—to keep girls in school. 

In 2022-2023, Canada’s contribution to the Improving Girls’ Access to Secondary Education in Haiti project (World Bank, $25 million, 2018-2023) helped address the critical need for better access to quality education and gender-sensitive schools. The project helped to strengthen education system governance in the country. Through its support to 60 public community schools and 117 non-public schools, the project enabled more than 57,000 vulnerable students to attend school, including 26,790 girls. In addition, 721 teachers and school principals underwent comprehensive gender-awareness training, thereby instilling the values of equitable treatment for both girls and boys. The project is working with Haiti’s Ministry of National Education and Professional Training to strengthen its officials’ capacity to consider the specific needs of girls and adolescents, particularly in institutional planning and evidence-based disaggregated budgeting practices.

In the Philippines, Canada’s Animating Change project ($1 million, 2021-2022) is supporting Big Bad Boo Studios’ 1001 Nights Civic Peace Education Program. The innovative, multi-platform educational entertainment program uses cartoons to teach conflict-affected children in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao about human rights, democracy, gender equality and non-violent resolution to conflict. The project provided activity books and comics to students across 422 schools, including on geographically isolated islands, as well as equipment and teaching guides to the Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education and its teachers. At the end of the project, 209 master trainers and 1,642 teachers, most of whom were women, received training on 1001 Nights curriculum and teaching pedagogies that promote gender equality and inclusion, while 2,902 parents/caregivers were trained on learning outcomes and ways to support their children’s home-based learning. For children who completed the curriculum and the post-test, there was a 44% reduction in the number of those with negative views on civic values—an improvement considering that the baseline showed a preference for violence to solve disputes. The civic values that saw the most dramatic decreases were intolerance of different opinions/ideas and gender inequality. Similarly, there was a 46% reduction in the number of children with perceptions of gender inequality, compared to the 10% reduction recorded for the control group. Parents and caregivers also reported a 16% decrease in children engaging in violent and/or aggressive behaviour.

Increasing access to gender-responsive, demand-driven, quality skills development

In Tanzania, the Teacher Education Support Project (TESP) (Government of Tanzania - Ministry of Finance, $53 million, 2017-2025) aims to improve both girls’ and boys’ basic education, including reading, writing and mathematics skills. It focuses on improving the quality and gender sensitivity of primary and secondary school education by investing in effective training for student teachers at 35 teachers’ colleges. Since 2017, more than 4,500 student teachers have participated in TESP’s professional development sessions. This has increased their ability to provide relevant, gender-sensitive and practical learning experiences to students. As a result of the Canadian-funded project, the percentage of teachers who rate their ability to apply effective and gender-sensitive teaching techniques as being either “medium” or “high” had increased from 66% in 2018 to almost 95% by June 2022. The project also integrated energy-efficient, green building measures, ultimately lowering the college’s carbon footprint in a country that is vulnerable to climate change. The project now serves as a sustainable model for the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and, potentially, the Tanzanian government in general.

In Jordan, the Scaling up Professional Development of Teachers project (Queen Raina Teacher Academy, $19.85 million, 2014-2023) focuses on the professional development for teachers, which plays a crucial role in enhancing the quality of education in the country. By improving educators’ skills and knowledge, the project is helping to provide a dignified learning experience for all students, including Syrian refugees. In 2022-2023, the project’s school network program trained 1,290 teachers and supervisors (780 of whom were women) on instructional practices. Another 451 teachers (275 of whom were women) received training through the project’s Advanced Instructional Leadership Professional Diploma. Since the start of the project in 2014, the Queen Rania Teacher Academy has trained more than 36,000 educators across Jordan—two thirds of whom are women. This training has improved instructional practices, empowering teachers to create student-centred learning environments that foster collaboration and innovation. Students, in turn, are actively participating in class and taking ownership of their learning. In 2022, the project received the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation’s Frank Murray Leadership Recognition for Continuous Improvement, underscoring the quality and impact of the project.

In the West Bank and Gaza, 2 Canadian-funded projects have improved access to inclusive education, particularly for girls, women and people with disabilities. The Gender-Responsive and Inclusive Technical and Vocational Education and Training in the West Bank (GRIT) project (Canadian Lutheran World Relief, over $9.93 million, 2019-2025) targets women who are interested in vocational training, while the Inclusive Education for Palestinian Children with Disabilities project (Humanity and Inclusion Canada, $4 million, 2019-2022) specifically supports children with disabilities. In 2022-2023, a total of 811 women applied for GRIT’s course offerings, more than double the number who applied the previous year. In addition, 327 of the women applied to traditionally male-dominated fields. The project has reported not only an increase in participation rates, but also improvements in the graduates’ confidence.

The Learning Through Education and Access to Skills for Employment for Refugees and Host Communities project (World University Service of Canada, over $13.1 million, 2019-2024) works to increase the enrolment and retention of girls at the upper primary and secondary school levels in the Kalobeyei Settlement and surrounding communities. With Canada’s support, it provides gender-responsive technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and scholarships to girls in the settlement and the Kakuma Refugee Camp.

In 2022-2023, 180 young women were given access to gender-responsive, market-driven skills training in the Kakuma Refugee Camp and 81% of participants successfully completed the courses. Another 187 young women were trained on market-relevant business and finance skills, and an additional 173 received digital skills training to enable them to earn an income online. Out of the 20 young women receiving TVET scholarships, 19 are continuing to pursue various courses in Kenya.

Canada continues to support innovative and accessible education through funding to the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) ($7.8 million, 2022-2024), which leverages distance learning and technology to achieve improved outcomes in education, skills development and lifelong learning across the Commonwealth. In 2022, with the support of Canada and other donors, COL helped over 12,700 nurses and midwives in Botswana, Eswatini and Seychelles gain access to online professional development courses, fulfilling their continued licensing requirements during and immediately following the pandemic. An additional 13,304 women and girls completed livelihood skills courses through COL support in 2022 in subjects such as motorcycle mechanics, welding, dress making, basket weaving, ICT and digital media marketing.

Improving gender-responsive quality education and skills development in conflict-affected and fragile states

For vulnerable learners who are out-of-school or at risk of dropping out, the Beyond Borders: Building Safe Spaces for Girls and Improving Education at the Border project (Save the Children Canada, over $10.6 million, 2020-2022) identified the need to provide alternative learning opportunities to crisis-affected students in the Colombian-Venezuelan border region, particularly girls on the move from Venezuela. Part of the Charlevoix Education Initiative and the Together for Learning campaign, this project established 24 new Catch-up Clubs, impacting a total of 1,315 children with low literacy levels who were at risk of dropping out. Catch-up Clubs are community-based, accelerated and remedial literacy programs for children in grade 3 and higher who are lacking foundational literacy skills. Social and emotional learning is embedded into the children’s activity toolkit to support their well-being.

As part of Canada’s $400-million commitment to girls’ education through the Charlevoix Education Initiative, the Adolescent Girls’ Education in Crisis Initiative (nearly $16 million, 2020-2024) promotes gender-responsive learning in South Sudan, Uganda and Syria. Implemented by the World University Service of Canada and the Aga Khan Foundation Canada, the initiative has fostered improved teaching practices among 836 teachers, over half of whom are women, through the introduction of best-practice teaching methods for class preparation, classroom management and instruction that recognizes the unique needs, challenges and potential of both girls and boys. Based on feedback from the students, this gender-sensitive and responsive teaching approach has had a positive impact on their sense of well-being and safety, and has contributed to a more conducive learning environment, in particular for young girls.

In El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, UNICEF’s Protective Learning and Nurturing Environments for Girls Education (PLANE) project (over $13 million, 2019-2023)has become an effective means of supporting national education systems and learning recovery. PLANE offers various options to ensure the continuity of education, especially for vulnerable children and adolescents, with a focus on psychosocial and psychoeducational support. For example, by the end of 2022 in Honduras, the project established 84 safe learning spaces and a tutorial learning system. It provided some 82,000 adolescents with access to flexible education delivery with blended and distance learning modalities. This included providing psychosocial and psychoeducational support, life and job placement skills, and technical skills and vocational training that are flexible, efficient and tailored to labour market needs. Furthermore, more than 8,400 teachers and facilitators were trained in psychoemotional care and mental health in order to improve the well-being of children and adolescents in formal and non-formal education.

Stories of change

© RCMP, Democratic Republic of Congo

Human dignity: Gender-responsive humanitarian action

The scope, scale and complexity of the humanitarian landscape has changed significantly over the past decade. Humanitarian needs have reached record highs, driven by an increase in the number of conflicts and more frequent natural disasters caused by climate change. In 2022-2023, there were more than 345 million people facing acute food insecurity around the world and more than 114 million people forcibly displaced from their homes. In response, the UN’s Global Appeal tripled to more than $56.6 billion in 2023 to target assistance to more than 245 million people.

In 2022-2023, Canada invested $1,272 million in international assistance in the human dignity: gender-responsive humanitarian action action area, $1,249 million of which was official development assistance. Canada worked with trusted humanitarian partners, such as the UN, the International Red Cross and NGOs. Canada provides humanitarian assistance that is timely, needs-based and people-centred, with a feminist approach that is human rights-based, inclusive, and adheres to humanitarian principles. This action area aims at contributing to reduced suffering, increased and maintained human dignity, and lives saved in populations experiencing humanitarian crises where Canada engages in humanitarian programming. To do this, in the context of increasingly complex humanitarian needs, Canada is focusing its efforts to achieve the following expected outcomes under the humanitarian path to action:

• increased access to and use of principled, gender-responsive humanitarian assistance and protection by crisis-affected populations
• improved effectiveness, efficiency and gender responsiveness of humanitarian action and protection by humanitarian stakeholders

Selected examples of outcomes achieved under the above-mentioned path to action are presented below.

Achievements in the spotlight

Increased access to gender-responsive humanitarian assistance and protection

Canada continued to scale up its response to the increasing number of large-scale and deteriorating humanitarian situations in 2022-2023. For example, it provided more than $143 million in humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan and the surrounding region. This funding helped provide some 22 million vulnerable people with life-saving food assistance and helped 6.6 million children and pregnant and lactating women who were facing acute malnutrition. In 2022-2023, Global Affairs Canada allocated $250 million in bilateral humanitarian assistance to partners responding to the Ukraine crises. As a result, its partners were able to reach almost 16 million people with life-saving assistance, such as food, water, shelter and basic health services. To help affected populations in Ukraine face harsh winter conditions, in 2022, Canada supported the distribution of items such as blankets, clothing, heating appliances and fuel, as well as over 1,250 generators for collective centres across Ukraine for internally displaced persons.

Canada also continued to respond to growing global food insecurity, allocating close to $650 million in humanitarian assistance funding for emergency food and nutrition support in 2022. This assistance helped the WFP reach 160 million food-insecure people. It also enabled the Canadian Foodgrains Bank to provide food assistance to more than 396,000 crisis-affected people and to deliver nutritional assistance to more than 15,000 crisis-affected people across 12 countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

In Latin America, Canada helped to improve the protection of vulnerable migrants and to support transit and destination countries in better responding to and managing large-scale migration and forced displacements in the region. Working with the UNHCR, Canada helped ensure that people in need of protection were identified in an efficient and timely manner. This included support in Costa Rica to identify more than 1,600 people seeking asylum following the implementation of a new refugee determination process. Working with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) through the Strengthening Government Capacities in Migration Management and Supporting the Regularization of Venezuelan Refugees and Migrants in Latin America and the Caribbean project, Canada contributed to strengthening the capacities of governments in the region. For example, the IOM provided training to around 1,150 Colombian officials, employers and beneficiaries to increase their understanding of how to integrate Venezuelan migrants and refugees into local labour markets. The project also helped Colombia to register nearly 44,000 Venezuelan migrants for temporary protection status in the country.

In 2022-2023, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) continued its commitment to resettle Afghan nationals as part of a special humanitarian initiative. Over half of Canada’s commitment focused on the Afghans who closely assisted Canada in Afghanistan as well as their families. Canada welcomed other vulnerable and at-risk groups, including women leaders, human rights defenders, persecuted ethnic and religious groups, journalists and members of 2SLGBTQI+ communities. By the end of March 2023, more than 29,500 at-risk Afghans had arrived in Canada. Canada met its commitment to welcome at least 40,000 Afghans by October 2023.

In Ukraine, IRCC mobilized quickly to deliver a multi-pronged response to Russia’s full-scale invasion. There were 3 charter flights in 2022 to help facilitate the arrival of nearly 1,000 Ukrainians and their family members to Canada. The Canada-Ukraine authorization for emergency travel (CUAET) measure was introduced in March 2022. In 2022-2023, close to 147,000 people arrived in Canada from through the CUAET, in addition to around 17,000 in-Canada CUAET applicants. Over 147,000 CUAET clients were approved for payments under the Canada-Ukraine Transitional Assistance Initiative and another nearly 15,000 clients received federally funded accommodation for up to 14 nights. Additionally, over 74,000 Ukrainian temporary residents and CUAET clients accessed at least 1 federally funded settlement service.

In 2022-2023, Canada continued to respond to the needs of those affected by rapid-onset emergencies. For example, Canada provided $50 million in response to earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria. This included 2 matching funds totalling $20 million that leveraged the generosity of Canadians to help those affected by these disasters. The Canadian Red Cross and the Humanitarian Coalition used these funds to deliver life-saving services, including emergency food, cash and vouchers, as well as critical water, sanitation and health services. In addition, the Canadian Humanitarian Assistance Fund provided life-saving assistance, including emergency food, water, health care and shelter, to more than 158,000 people in 8 countries.

Through its humanitarian reserve, the Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) disbursed $637,661 to 17 projects in 2022-2023 in response to various crises around the world. For example, funded projects provided critical support to populations affected by natural disasters, including flooding in Suriname, the Philippines, Pakistan and Mozambique, earthquakes in the Philippines and Türkiye, and Hurricane Ian in Cuba. Other projects included a focus on support and protection for new refugee arrivals in Uganda, initiatives to support internally displaced persons and preventing cholera in Haiti. Overall, the CFLI provided direct humanitarian assistance to more than 58,100 individuals across 11 countries, empowering local organizations to build their resilience and capacity to respond quickly and effectively to help crisis-affected populations.

As a member of the International Charter Space and Major Disasters, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) works with other space agencies around the world to support disaster relief operations at no cost to the end users. For example, Canada contributes valuable data from the RADARSAT Constellation Mission and RADARSAT-2 satellites, both of which have 24/7 emergency call services in case of disasters around the world. In 2022-2023, the CSA provided space data for 51 activations (requests from a country for emergency satellite data), which represented 82% of all activations around the globe. Since April 2022, the CSA has provided RADARSAT Constellation Mission imagery on a weekly basis to the State Space Agency of Ukraine. Between May and October 2022, it also supported the Group on Earth Observations by providing national coverage for agricultural land management in the context of the Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine.

The Public Health Agency of Canada’s (PHAC’s) National Emergency Strategic Stockpile (NESS) provides surge capacity to provinces and territories during public health emergencies when their own resources are depleted or not immediately available. However, should there be a surplus in terms of domestic needs, PHAC also donates materials to other countries in need. In 2022-2023, the NESS donated:

• 9.2 million non-medical masks to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
• 345,500 units of supplies such as cots, blankets, mattresses, and towels to the Canadian Red Cross to help respond to humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and the surrounding region
• 523,000 face shields and some 1.5 million disposable gowns to the Canadian Red Cross to support international COVID-19 relief and other humanitarian crises
• 2.8 million pairs of nitrile gloves to support Cuba’s emergency response to oil tank explosions in Matanzas

Improved the effectiveness and efficiency of humanitarian actions

In 2022-2023, Canada continued its work to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the international humanitarian system. This included working constructively through various multilateral forums, including as a signatory to the Grand Bargain and the Good Humanitarian Donorship principles. Canada used its governance role in key UN partner organizations to advocate for efficient and effective humanitarian operations that prioritize gender equality. For instance, as a member of the WFP’s executive board, Canada was a strong voice for prioritizing a gender approach in the programme’s emergency response, and greater gender balance in its workforce. Based on these efforts by Canada and others, the WFP developed the new Cash Policy that aims to put women and girls at the forefront of its policies, which is an important step for further advancing gender-responsive humanitarian action.

Canada also continued to leverage humanitarian diplomacy on the ground. For example, through bilateral and multilateral engagement, Canada encouraged parties to armed conflicts in Ethiopia, Ukraine and Sudan to adhere to international humanitarian law, including the obligation to allow and facilitate rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians in need, and to respect and protect humanitarian and medical personnel and infrastructure.

This funding helped NGO partners to provide SRH services to some 391,000 people, which prevented death, disease and disability related to unwanted pregnancies, obstetric complications, reproductive disorders and GBV.

Furthermore, to strengthen data and needs assessments within the system, Canada provided financial support to the Food and Agriculture Organization’s Integrated Food Security Phase Classification ($2 million, 2022-2023), and to the Joint Intersectoral Analysis Framework ($500,000, 2022-2023). Canada also worked with Ground Truth Solutions to support accountability to affected populations ($25,000, 2022-2023). This included conducting quantitative surveys of crisis-affected communities in Burkina Faso and using the findings to ensure that these communities’ voices were heard and to advocate for humanitarian plans to be centred around their opinions and concerns.

Stories of change

© UNICEF/UNI183054/Nesbitt, Ethiopia

Growth that works for everyone

Global economic growth has experienced a sharp downturn as a result of the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, skyrocketing inflation, high interest rates and disruptions caused by escalating geopolitical tensions around the world, including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Many developing countries are experiencing lower rates of economic growth, which could result in a rise in poverty rates—including in countries that are already dealing with high levels of poverty—which affects the poorest and most marginalized people the most, particularly women and girls.

Canada supports interventions in countries that are most affected by persistent and extreme poverty. These interventions challenge barriers to inclusive growth and women’s full and equal participation in the economy, including barriers preventing women from owning assets or accessing financial services, markets or trade opportunities. By working with women and youth entrepreneurs, including smallholder farmers, traders and migrant women, Canada supports marginalized populations to improve their livelihoods, and economic empowerment, rights and opportunities. The Prime Minister made a 5-year commitment of $100 million to address issues related to unpaid and paid care work in low- and middle-income countries. This commitment recognizes the value of the care economy, following the COVID pandemic, and its inherent gender inequalities with respect to the disproportionate responsibility for care work shouldered by women and girls.

In 2022-2023, Canada invested $1,358 million in international assistance in the growth that works for everyone action area, $1,275 million of which was official development assistance. This action area aims at contributing to enhanced economic well-being and enjoyment of economic rights for the poorest, most marginalized and most vulnerable, particularly women and girls, in countries where Canada engages. To do this, Canada has invested in a range of projects and initiatives that aim to achieve outcomes under the following paths to action:

• bringing down barriers to women’s economic empowerment
• building more inclusive and sustainable economies
• strengthening economic resilience 

Selected examples of outcomes achieved under the above-mentioned paths to action are presented below.

Achievements in the spotlight

Eliminating barriers to women’s economic empowerment

In June 2021, Canada announced a 5-year commitment of $100 million to address unpaid and paid care work issues in low- and middle-income countries. For example, in 2022, Canada’s investment in the World Bank’s multi-donor Invest in Childcare initiative ($10 million, 2022-2024) contributed to child care activities in over 28 countries, the majority of which are in Sub-Saharan Africa. This investment included 26 small catalytic grants that helped countries to advance their child care agenda, and 5 larger grants ($2 million to $5 million) implemented by national governments in Cote d’Ivoire, Moldova, Rwanda, Senegal and Somalia. The initiatives support data and evidence gathering, knowledge exchange and analytical work on child care, as well as capacity building. These are expected to increase the availability of quality and affordable child care, specifically for the most vulnerable families, and in support of women’s economic empowerment.

The International Labour Organization’s Opening doors: more and better opportunities for domestic workers in Peru project ($3 million, 2020-2025) has contributed to improving the socio-economic conditions of and empowering women care workers, especially domestic workers, in Peru. Partners have facilitated the registration of 3,490 domestic workers by their employers, and carried out workshops with women domestic workers, domestic workers’ unions and other women’s organizations on building workers’ capacities to protect their rights and improve their working conditions.

In Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, projects such as the Mashreq Gender Facility (Umbrella Facility for Gender Equali, $3.4 million in Lebanon, and a total of $10 million for Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, 2018-2024) provided access to skills development and training to improve economic rights and livelihoods, particularly for poor and marginalized women and youth. Through these projects, women entrepreneurs received vocational, entrepreneurial and financial skills training. This led to policy reforms that improved women’s access to economic opportunities and decent work and facilitated job placements and self-employment by connecting women with employers. The projects addressed the challenges that women entrepreneurs are facing by making the business-registration processes in Jordan and Lebanon gender- sensitive, and by increasing access to financing for female entrepreneurs in Iraq. Through community education sessions and workshops, the projects increased awareness about the importance of women’s economic empowerment and led to innovative business models that supported women-led businesses in the green business, renewable energy and agriculture fields.

In the West Bank and Gaza, several Canada-funded projects focused on increasing employment and entrepreneurship, particularly for women and youth. These projects focused on reducing the barriers that women and other marginalized groups face when accessing economic opportunities, addressing gender-based barriers to participation, and improving decision making and access to resources and training for women and youth. For example, in 2022-2023, the Generating Revenue Opportunities for Women and Youth in the West Bank project (Cowater International, nearly $10 million, 2018-2024) helped 659 women entrepreneurs to either find employment or start up micro, small and medium enterprises.

In Lebanon, projects contributed to an improved enabling environment in which women and youth can exercise their economic rights and leadership within their families, communities and in the civil, public and private sectors to secure sustainable livelihoods and entrepreneurship opportunities. Projects such as Supporting Women Cooperatives and Associations in the Agro-food Sector (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, over $6.3 million, 2018-2024) assess and address discriminatory legislation and policies that hinder women’s economic participation and aim to create an enabling environment by advocating for legal reforms and amendments to promote gender equality. This project emphasizes the importance of stakeholder engagement and awareness building by training various stakeholders, including government officials and women-led businesses, to equip them with the knowledge and tools they need to support women’s economic empowerment and entrepreneurship. Through Canada’s programming, 675 Lebanese participants (including 631 women) from 257 different cooperatives and informal associations were provided cooperative business school training to increase their capacity to develop business plans and improve their productivity in the agro-food sector. In addition, 45 employees from the Ministry of Agriculture were trained on gender mainstreaming within the country’s agriculture cooperative movement, equipping them with the knowledge and tools they need to support women’s economic empowerment in Lebanon.

Building more inclusive and sustainable economies

In 2022-2023, Canada’s contribution to inclusive and sustainable economic growth included the SOCODEVI-led Development Program for Inclusive and Sustainable Model Cooperatives, which helped strengthen the financial security and economic resilience of members of 5 model cooperatives in Senegal, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. As a result of the project, 3 of the 5 cooperatives (1 in Senegal and 2 in Côte d’Ivoire) have seen an increased uptake (between 20% and 100%) of products and services by their members, which has helped improve cooperative performance and the members’ living conditions.

Canada’s support for the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa fund unlocked $98 million in financing for 5,000 women-led small and medium-sized enterprises, enabling them to access loans ranging from $3,000 to $1.5 million.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, the 2X Canada: Inclusive Economic Recovery project, implemented with FinDev Canada, invested $15 million in LocFund Next, a fund that invests in microfinance institutions so they can provide financial services to low-income and vulnerable populations. This increased the number of institutions receiving funding—from 32 microfinance institutions to more than 70. At least 200,000 microfinance clients received funding, half of whom were women, and an estimated 2.4 million people benefited by being able to access financial services (such as loans) that were previously unavailable to them.

Canada’s contribution to the Sustainable Opportunities for Employment in Colombia, Ecuador and Peruproject ($6 million, 2022-2024), led by CUSO, resulted in employment opportunities and increased financial stability for vulnerable Venezuelan refugee and migrant populations. The project successfully engaged close to 5,000 participants through partnerships with the private sector. As a result, about 75% of participants secured employment (almost 63% of whom were women, 81% were young people and almost 10% were victims of conflict). Supporting participants’ transition to the formal economy increased their job security and stability, promoted gender equality in the workforce and enabled access to social security. In addition, the project’s private sector partners recognized that working with individuals from traditionally under-represented groups has benefits, such as increased competitiveness, innovation and productivity.

Strengthening economic resilience

Through the Making Trade Work for Women in Eastern Africa project ($15 million, 2018-2023), Canada’s partnership with TradeMark East Africa contributed to the economic empowerment of women traders in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Border crossings were eased by legislative reforms, which improved the mobility of participating small and informal women traders. In addition, 9 new recommendations submitted by women traders’ associations were adopted by the relevant decision makers (primarily government officials). The project helped to form a cooperative for women with disabilities and, in total, supported over 63,500 participants. Close to 70,500 traders and farmers were connected to new markets and trading opportunities, which surpassed the project’s target by around 15%. About 22,800 women cross-border traders switched from informal trade to formal trade with the assistance of associations and cooperatives set up at targeted borders. Transitioning to formal trade also helped to increase their monthly sales from an average of US$328 to US$468.

Stories of change

© WFP/Dana Houalla, Lebanon

Environment and climate action

Climate change and biodiversity loss pose a growing threat to the planet and to all people. Climate change is exacerbating pre-existing vulnerabilities and contributing to insecurity. It is expected that climate-related geopolitical challenges will continue to increase, including conflicts over arable land, water and food resources, and climate-induced human displacement. Developing countries are the hardest hit and the least equipped to prevent and cope with the consequences. Small Island Developing States (SIDS) also face structural and systemic vulnerabilities. Increasingly exposed to the impacts of climate change, they suffer from the effects of high-emitting countries in the form of dangerous and intense natural hazards such as flooding, drought and coastal erosion.

While nearly half of the world’s population is directly dependent on biodiversity and natural resources for its livelihood, biodiversity loss is projected to continue with up to 1 million species being threatened with extinction, causing disastrous socio-economic impacts globally. Nature is responsible for essential ecosystem services, from the pollination of crops and the protection of coasts from flooding and erosion to water supply, timber production, fisheries and carbon storage. According to the World Wildlife Fund, if we continue in our business-as-usual ways, these services will disappear and the global economy will lose at least US$479 billion a year, and nearly US$10 trillion by 2050. 

The environment and climate action action area is at the heart of Canada’s development efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, to protect the planet from degradation and to promote sustainable natural-resource management. Long-term development gains are diminished when the environment is threatened, because poor and vulnerable people are disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental degradation, and their livelihoods and well-being depend on having access to a healthy and sustainably managed environment. In its support for developing countries, Canada focuses on areas of high impact, with respect to both environmental and poverty-reduction outcomes. In particular, Canada has committed to supporting developing countries in their efforts to transition to a low-carbon, climate-resilient and nature-positive world. It is supporting initiatives that will reduce global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, improve climate adaptation and resilience, and protect and sustainably manage ecosystems and their services. Canada’s previous $2.65-billion climate finance commitment (2015-2021) is expected to reduce or avoid over 200 megatonnes of GHG emissions. This is the equivalent of taking about 57 million cars off the road a year and will help more than 6 million people adapt to the impacts of climate change by 2030. In 2021, Canada doubled its international climate finance to $5.3 billion (2021-2026).

In 2022-2023, Canada invested $1,242 million in international assistance in the environment and climate action action area, $1,230 million of which was official development assistance. This action area aims at contributing to an improved state of the environment and climate resilience for marginalized and vulnerable populations and future generations, particularly women and girls, in countries where Canada engages. To do this, in 2022-2023, supported by Canada’s climate finance commitments and other environmental and climate programming, Canada focused on significantly increasing assistance to achieve outcomes under the following paths to action:

• enhance environmental governance and women empowerment
• mobilize businesses for environmental performance
• increase environmental practices that support healthy, resilient and adaptive communities

Moreover, at the 2022 UN Biodiversity Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in Montréal, Canada announced $350 million in new and additional funding (2023-2026) to support developing countries in implementing the Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.

Selected examples of outcomes achieved under the above-mentioned paths to action are presented below.

Achievements in the spotlight

Strengthening gender-responsive environmental governance around the world

Under its climate finance program, Canada supports the development of gender-responsive climate governance solutions that address the specific needs and challenges of women and girls around the globe. For example, Canada is helping to increase people’s knowledge and their ability to develop and implement actions to address climate change through the following targeted initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean:

• Community Resilience Building (Canadian Red Cross, nearly $4.8 million, 2018-2022) in Belize, Suriname, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
• Support to the Climate Resilience Execution Agency of Dominica ($3.7 million, 2019-2024)
• Empowerment of Women for Climate Action in Honduras (Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), over $6.6 million, 2018-2023)

As of 2022-2023, a total of 9,752 people, including some 5,400 women (direct beneficiaries), were provided training to increase their knowledge of how to develop, implement and participate in climate change governance mechanisms and solutions. This included training on disaster response, water management and gender awareness. Project activities are helping beneficiaries to respond to the effects of climate change. For example, under the Gender Responsive Community Resilience building project, 18,389 community members (indirect beneficiaries) in Belize, Suriname, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines have increased their disaster resilience as a result of training and the incorporation of gender equality and climate change adaptation into community plans.

Canada is helping local governments to improve their climate governance. For example, in Indonesia, the Land4Life: Sustainable Landscape for Climate-Resilient Livelihoods project (World Agroforestry Centre, $17 million, 2021-2025) has enabled the provincial governments in South Sumatra, South Sulawesi and East Nusa Tenggara to plan and implement climate change and adaptation action as part of their sustainable land-use and development policies. In all 3 provinces, the project has facilitated the adoption of gender-sensitive approaches, helping local governments to identify women’s specific concerns, including those related to their access to resources and services. The project is expected to support 1,800 people, including 720 women, to improve their knowledge and capacities in climate-smart agriculture and food-system solutions. Since the beginning of the project in 2021, 147 people, including 78 women, have substantially improved and applied their knowledge of climate-smart agriculture. The project's action in Indonesia demonstrates a scalable model for climate-smart development that can be replicated in other regions.

The Energy Efficiency Hub (EE Hub) is a voluntary platform of 16 countries that encourages government-to-government collaboration and exchanges on regulating and implementing energy efficiency policies. This platform has hosted several workshops to share best practices, some of which included the participation of Canadian experts, resulting in the improved effectiveness of these policies in the construction, industry, appliance and transport sectors. Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) represents Canada on this platform and provided Canada’s $120,000-contribution in 2022-2023, which supported the EE Hub’s ongoing activities, including its 5 working groups. These groups are a forum for subject-matter experts to exchange information about their countries’ current energy-efficiency policies and to discuss emerging fields.

Mitigating the causes of climate change is a core priority for the GEF and is fundamental to progress in all focal areas. The GEF promotes technological innovation and leverages all sources of public and private climate finance for low-emission technologies. GEF funds also support nature-based solutions that enhance land and coastal carbon stocks. In 2022-2023, GEF investments reduced GHGs by 147.3 million tonnes.

Canada uses its seat on the Council to monitor progress on gender equality and to advocate for the inclusion of women and girls in all partnerships. Canada advocates for enhanced reporting measures, knowledge-sharing opportunities and capacity building for gender equality across GEF projects. Frameworks have been established to monitor and track sex-disaggregated and gender-sensitive indicators and results at the program and project levels. For example, the Resilient Food Systems program developed a program-level gender monitoring framework that is supported by the development of monitoring guidelines.

In 2022-2023, Canada continued to support the International Model Forest Network (IMFN), the world’s largest network dedicated to sustainable landscape governance. Through RESTAURacción: Wildfire Restoration in Latin America, NRCan’s Canadian Forest Service’s IMFN Secretariat focused on strengthening women’s leadership in sustainable land use and working with 8 model forest partners in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru to restore degraded forests.

In 2022-2023, the IMFN Secretariat also implemented Scaling-up Nature-based Leadership Platforms. This 4-year, $18.7-million investment uses IMFN’s partnerships in ODA-eligible countries to scale up forest and landscape restoration, enable inclusive landscape governance and equip the next generation of forest leaders to address climate change and biodiversity loss. In its inaugural year, IMFN Climate enabled a regional Costa Rican model forest partner to create 7 scholarships. Four of these were for women (2 in Brazil, 1 in Peru and 1 in Honduras) and 3 were for men (1 in Peru, 1 in Ecuador and 1 in Costa Rica). These scholarships will strengthen the research capacity of the next generation of forest leaders. Technical assistance was also provided to Brazilian and Guatemalan model forests in terms of governance approaches to forest landscape restoration and in terms of promoting the sustainable management and use of resources at the landscape level.

Mobilizing businesses to enhance environmental performance

The program promotes private sector financing for clean energy projects, through the use of concessional funds to catalyze investments in renewable, low-carbon technologies that would not otherwise happen.

Canada’s international climate finance is increasing access to clean energy solutions and technologies, supporting the reduction of GHGs and creating jobs in the renewable energy sector in developing countries. For example, as of 2022, Phase I ($75 million, 2013-2040) and Phase II (Asian Development Bank, $200 million, 2017-2044) of the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in Asia have created jobs for over 12,500 people. They are helping to improve women’s empowerment by giving them employment opportunities in the construction and operation of renewable energy projects like solar power and hydropower plants, where women are significantly under-represented. By increasing access to reliable clean energy, the Canadian funds help improve the lives and empowerment of women and girls by enabling them to move into more productive activities. For example, in households with electricity, studies show that women spend less time on household chores and are more likely to participate in income-generating activities, and girls have higher educational attainment.

In 2022-2023, the International Assistance Innovation Program’s ongoing support of the Energy Access Relief Fund ($28 million, 2022-2025) in Asia and Africa ensured that 75 off-grid solar energy companies received low-interest loans. This prevented some of the companies from filing for bankruptcy and enabled them to provide clean energy to some 3 million people, half of whom are women. Last year, more than 14,800 entrepreneurs, including 5,600 women, used this clean energy to support their businesses, preventing 3.9 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions—the equivalent of taking over 1 million cars off the road a year.

Investing in environmental practices that support healthy, resilient and adaptive communities

In Latin America and the Caribbean, Canada’s climate finance is helping smallholder farmers to adopt practices and technologies that enable them to adapt to climate change and reduce their GHGs. As of 2022-2023, more than 6,400 people, including almost 2,200 women, have improved their knowledge and capacities to develop and implement climate-smart agriculture and food system solutions. For example, since 2018, the Climate Adaptation and Economic Development of Agricultural Sectors in Haiti project (Centre for International Studies and Cooperation, $13 million, 2019-2025) enabled almost 3,400 farmers and cooperative members in Haiti, including 1,321 women, to adopt climate change adaptation practices in the country’s cocoa- and yam-based agroforestry systems, which is expected to improve technical proficiency and agricultural productivity.

Canada supports projects that leverage nature-based solutions by protecting and restoring ecosystems, while also generating benefits for biodiversity. For example, the Natural Infrastructure for Water Security in Peru project (United States Agency for International Development, $16.2 million, 2018-2023) is improving the country’s water security and climate risk resilience by promoting the conservation, restoration and rehabilitation of natural ecosystems, or “natural infrastructure.” Since its inception in 2017, the project has facilitated the development of 38 laws, policies, regulations and standards that address climate change adaptation in Peru. This project has improved the climate change resiliency of over 6,000 people, including by using climate information systems, taking risk-reducing actions and implementing more sustainable water management.

Canadian support to the Bolstering Reconstruction in Iraq through Development, Growth and Employment project (World University Service of Canada, $14 million, 2020-2026) helped address environmental pollution hotspots in 7 governorates across the country. It mitigated and addressed environmental challenges through cooperation between different levels of government and stakeholders. For example, in 2022, the project trained government officials to identify, monitor and address over 80 pollution hotspots, which impacted 55,000 vulnerable individuals.

The Aswan Skills Development Program (Aga Khan Foundation Canada, nearly $19 million, 2015-2022) and the Improved rural women nutrition in Egypt project (FAO, over $2.7 million, 2021-2023) are supporting climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies that focus on nature-based and locally led solutions. Thanks to Canada’s support, both projects are mobilizing businesses to improve their environmental performance and promote gender-responsive, climate-smart solutions. By providing training, workshops and entrepreneurship programs that focus on environmentally sustainable practices, these projects have facilitated the adoption of nature-positive climate change-mitigation and adaptation strategies and have empowered more than 4,000 women entrepreneurs across both projects. For example, the nutrition project integrated environmental considerations into value chains such as livestock, dairy processing and horticulture production. It helped set up 20 greenhouses and tunnels that are making produce available all year round. The choice of vegetables planted was informed by a nutritional analysis conducted under the project. This has ensured that women are able to not only sell the produce to generate income but also improve nutritional outcomes for themselves and their households by consuming what they grow.

In 2022-2023, the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) continued to help local NGOs in 40 countries to develop and implement strong environmental strategies, plans, frameworks and services. The goal is to engage women and people in vulnerable situations as active leaders and participants in addressing climate change and environmental degradation. For example, thanks to CFLI funding, more than 3,000 primary school students and 263 teachers from 26 schools and organizations received hands-on experience with Namibia’s Giraffe Conservation Foundation (over $30,000, 2021-2023). By reconnecting young Namibians with their local environment, this project is helping to create a generation of environmentally literate citizens who will be motivated to protect their natural environment and make informed decisions about sustainable living.

Although Small Island Developing States (SIDS) make negligible contributions to global GHG levels, they find themselves on the front line in the fight against climate change—and are the most vulnerable to its impacts. The aim of the Climate Finance Access Network (CFAN) is to support the most climate-vulnerable developing countries, including SIDS, and help them to build their capacities to structure and secure public and private finance for climate mitigation and adaptation.

Canada has announced a $5.25-million contribution to the CFAN over the next 2 years, building on Canada’s initial $9.5-million contribution in 2020-2021. This support will enable CFAN to help developing countries, including SIDS, to do the following:

• improve the efficiency and coordination of global climate finance initiatives
• expand the pipeline of climate adaptation and mitigation projects
• improve the integration of gender considerations into climate finance project proposals

To date, CFAN has reduced CO2-equivalent emissions by more than 153,000 tonnes and has helped more than 221,000 beneficiaries in 8 Pacific Island countries to reduce their vulnerability to climate change impacts.

Stories of change

© UN Women Egypt/Mahmoud Abdel Latif, Egypt

Governance includes the formal and informal mechanisms that determine how decisions are made about the management of public affairs in a country, influencing the rights of individuals and the delivery of public services. To be inclusive, governance must allow all people, including those who have been traditionally left out or marginalized—such as women, young people, people with disabilities, transient and migrant populations, and racial, ethnic and religious groups—to influence political processes and to hold government authorities to account.

This is a vast, cross-cutting issue and in the past year, governance concerns have exploded on the international stage. The following have been the m ost notable :

• challenges stemming from regional instability and conflict
• the decline of democracy
• the erosion of human rights protections and the growing anti-gender movement
• the increasing risk of debt crises in the poorest countries
• global competition on rules for international taxation, the regulation of artificial intelligence and access to critical minerals

Ensuring equitable access to justice

Through the Access to Judicial Services in Haiti project (over $21.6 million, 2017-2024), undertaken in partnership with Avocats Sans Frontières Canada, Canada funded a legal aid and assistance program that has helped almost 3,500 vulnerable individuals to defend their legal rights. Following 2 appeals lodged with the support of the project’s legal assistance program, 151 people, including 59 women, who were arbitrarily detained in the jurisdiction of Port-au-Prince obtained their freedom. Furthermore, amid a rise in abusive pre-trial detention, the project supported a national awareness campaign that informed some 18,600 people of the impact of abusive pre-trial detention on women and girls in Haiti through radio broadcasts, theatre productions and the publication of photos, videos, posters and articles on social media networks.

Enabling all citizens to participate in public life

In 2022-2023, Canada supported the International Foundation for Electoral Systems’ (IFES’s) work in Ukraine through the Ensuring Meaningful Engagement Through Reform for Gender Equality project (nearly $7 million, 2018-2023), which aimed to provide a holistic strategy to help civil society, lawmakers, the media, and government and academic institutions bring about reforms that cultivate inclusive governance, gender equality and the empowerment of women. Responding to Ukraine’s needs following Russia’s invasion, IFES is supporting Ukraine’s electoral management bodies, public institutions and civil society organizations to address the rapidly emerging needs resulting from the war. For example, women’s political representation has steadily dropped, as Russia’s war is continuing to negatively affect women and other vulnerable groups in Ukraine. IFES is working in close coordination with the Central Election Commission of Ukraine, local civil society organizations and women’s groups to develop concrete legal amendments aimed at strengthening the political participation of women and minority groups.

Through Canada’s financial contribution to UN Women, it has helped the Enhancing Women’s Political Leadership and Decision-Making in Kenya project ($5 million, 2021-2025) to increase women’s participation in elections—as voters, candidates, electoral administrators and party supporters. Through the project’s advocacy initiatives, Canada has supported more than 1,000 women leaders, including young women and women with disabilities. This has been achieved by ensuring political parties in Kenya adhere to the constitutional rule that a maximum of two thirds of electoral or appointive body members can be of the same gender.

Violence against women in public life deters many women from entering politics in Kenya. To address this, Canada has provided support to enable 500 women survivors of violence to take part in elections. This included providing legal aid, counselling and medical services as well as police support. As a result of these and other Canadian-funded initiatives, the rate of women candidates standing for election in Kenya increased from less than 9% in 2017, to 12% in 2022. Furthermore, 65% of women members of parliament opted to run again in Kenya’s national election in 2022. The election of 7 women governors in 2022 (including 2 first women governors elected in 2 counties) demonstrated the importance of supporting women so they can seek high-level positions and participate in political processes and activities.

In Lebanon, projects such as Expanding the Social Safety Net (World Food Programme, $45.5 million, 2020-2025) have contributed to increased participation in democratic processes, enhanced accountability and transparency in public service delivery, and improved access to public services—particularly for marginalized groups, including women, youth and refugees. This project enhances food security and social assistance for the most vulnerable Lebanese families impacted by the Port of Beirut explosion in 2020 and other multi-faceted crises. It provides technical assistance to improve governance of Lebanon’s National Poverty Targeting Program by enhancing the program’s selection criteria, targeting, transparency, monitoring and accountability. Through this project, Canada has played a leadership role in ensuring the development of a social safety net based on a unified social registry. In so doing, Canada’s support has scaled up cash assistance for 15,000 households across Lebanon and will continue to integrate gender considerations into programming.

Ensuring that public services work for everyone

In 2022-2023, Canada continued to support the Government of Mongolia in implementing reforms to create a more professional, merit-based civil service, and to improve gender equality in public administration. The Moving Towards a Professional and Citizen-Centred Civil Service in Mongolia project (UNDP, $7 million, 2018-2022) helped newly formed ministries to adopt results-oriented and competency-based job descriptions. The project helped to develop a competency framework for public administration employees, and tested methods and tools for applying this framework to human resources functions, which will be important for cultivating a merit-based civil service. The project also organized human resources training for more than 2,500 human resource practitioners and senior officers.

As a member of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), Canada Post helps support the UPU’s technical cooperation programs. These programs help to reduce the postal divide between industrialized and developing countries. Among its other goals, this assistance supports the implementation of postal-reform plans that are based on national analyses, training and the purchase of equipment. Between April 2022 and December 2022, Canada Post paid almost $2,488,968 in UPU dues and $42,119 in contributions to the UPU’s Quality of Service Fund.

Recognizing that strengthened tax capacity contributes to improved outcomes for strategic government planning and inclusive program delivery, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) participates in efforts to enhance the effectiveness of partner country administrations. In 2022-2023, the CRA supported efforts to address international tax challenges through Tax Inspectors Without Borders, a joint Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and UNDP project. For instance, the CRA provided expert assistance in risk assessment, and audit and transfer pricing techniques related to taxation on the forestry industry in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and the mining industry in Guinea. With the CRA’s assistance, PNG’s Internal Revenue Commission launched 3 audit files focused on transfer pricing in the forestry sector.

In 2022-2023, the Public Service Commission of Canada (PSC) worked with representatives from public service organizations in Ghana, Mongolia and Peru to improve their understanding of gender equality, the recruiting and hiring of public servants, recruitment services and programs, personnel assessment, modernization and oversight. Through an initiative funded by the World Bank, the PSC worked with Ghana’s Public Services Commission as part of a project that aims to improve its efficiency and accountability in delivering vital public services. As part of a long-standing relationship with Mongolia, the PSC has been in discussions to possibly provide advice and expertise to help that country reform its public service legislation. The PSC is also participating in the Modernization of Peru’s Civil Service Project to support efforts made by the country’s National Civil Service Authority to improve the civil service. Through this project, the PSC will provide technical expertise on capacity building, youth recruitment and gender equality in the public service.

Stories of change

© RCMP, Mali

Peace and security

Through its peace and security international assistance programming, Canada provides gender-responsive support to address global peace and security challenges. With increasing fragility and instability around the world—leading to increasingly violent conflicts, and irregular migration and terrorism—it is more essential than ever that Canada continue its peace and security efforts. From responding to Russia’s aggression and illegal occupation in Ukraine to addressing security threats in Haiti, Canada is making sustainable and impactful efforts toward supporting peace and security around the world. There is also a need for increased capacity to address emerging cross-cutting peace and security issues. The new NATO Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence (CCASCOE) that Canada hosts in Montréal may contribute to this capacity once it becomes fully staffed and operational in late 2024.

In 2022-2023, Canada invested $307 million in international assistance in the peace and security action area, $219 million of which was official development assistance. This action area aims at contributing to increased peace and security for Canadians, and for the poorest, most marginalized and most vulnerable, particularly women and girls, in fragile and conflict-affected settings and situations where Canada engages. To do this, Canada has invested in a range of programs that seek to achieve outcomes under the following paths to action:

• address violent conflict and fragility
• reform security systems and reduce security threats
• strengthen international organizations’ peace and security efforts

Canada’s objective in the first path to action is to prevent and stabilize conflict situations by focusing on political inclusion, security, justice and respect for human rights to address group grievances and horizontal inequalities in situations of rising tensions, violent conflict and transitions to peace and stability. For the second path to action, Canada’s objective is to specifically target security threats and support the improvement of security systems in partner countries by taking a gender-responsive approach to responding to security challenges. This is to address certain security threats, such as organized crime, weapons proliferation, terrorism and cyber-violence, which frequently contribute to conflict and violence. For the third path to action, Canada’s objective is to strengthen the multilateral system to prevent, mitigate and respond to violent conflict, security threats, insecurity and fragility more effectively.

Selected examples of outcomes achieved under the above-mentioned paths to action are presented under the Achievements in the spotlight section below. These outcomes are achieved through programs including the following:

• Peace and Stabilization Operations Program
• Office of Human Rights, Freedoms and Inclusion
• Anti-Crime Capacity Building Program
• Counter-Terrorism Capacity Building Program
• Weapons Threat Reduction Program

Achievements in the spotlight

Addressing violent conflict and fragility around the globe

Through Canada’s Support to Mozambique Peace Process project (United Nations Office for Project Services, $1.5 million, 2022-2023), significant progress has been made on disarmament, demobilization and reintegration in the country, which are all key elements of the 2019 Maputo Peace Accord and Mozambique’s efforts to end decades of conflict through national reconciliation. In 2022-2023, the project’s activities led to the closure of 4 additional military bases and the demobilization of some 1,600 former combatants. By the end of March 2023, Canada had contributed to the closure of 15 out of a total of 16 military bases and helped to demobilize almost 4,900 ex-combatants. The project has also helped to establish assembly areas to provide ex-combatants with reinsertion kits that include housing, agricultural and hygiene materials, as well as clothing. All ex-combatants have received a 1-year stipend to support their transition into civilian life. In addition, the project conducted further monitoring missions of closed bases and found no evidence of resumed activity at the 2 bases visited. Through this project, Canada, the UN and the Peace Process Secretariat have supported Mozambique’s pursuit of definitive peace and national reconciliation.

In Colombia, Canada’s support (over $4.7 million, 2018-2023) to KAIROS’s Women of Courage: Women, Peace and Security project has helped to reduce internal conflicts over natural resources in the Magdalena Medio region by working with women human rights defenders and women’s rights organizations. For example, with the project’s support, the number of women victims or survivors of human rights abuses who have participated in peace processes has increased significantly, from 44% in 2018-2019 to 93% in 2022-2023. The project trains women to engage on key issues, protect the environment, address climate impacts and build peace in the Magdalena Medio region, which is rich in natural resources and a focal point for internal conflicts. The project prepared women peacebuilders and land defenders to speak out about climate justice at COP27 in Egypt in November 2022. In addition, the Colombian women-led partner, Organización Femenina Popular, was selected as a recipient of Global Affairs Canada’s Women, Peace and Security, Civil Society Leadership Award in 2022 for its Guardianas de la Vida (guardians of life and nature) program.

For example, through CFLI funding (nearly $42,000, 2022-2023), Syrian journalists’ awareness of the powerful role ethical journalism can play in strengthening civil peace was promoted with workshops involving 98 Syrian professionals, 43% of whom were women. Participants gained a better understanding of their ethical responsibilities in media coverage, especially when covering conflict and building peace. Through participation in such activities, journalists and activists have contributed to consolidating ethical journalism in the Syrian media and strengthening positive media speech that calls for peaceful coexistence and a distancing from hatred and discrimination. Through projects like this, the CFLI has helped to build the capacity of local organizations and individuals to build peace in fragile and conflict-affected settings.

In 2022-2023, the Partnership Fund for a Resilient Ukraine project (Foreign and Commonwealth Office, $15 million, 2021-2026), supported by Canada and other donors, played a crucial role in responding to Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine. By engaging with 51 communities in Ukraine, the project focused on repairing and restoring 25 war-damaged public buildings, including hospitals, schools and community infrastructure. Thanks to this support, children have been able to return to schools, patients have received life-saving medical care and cultural centres have become hubs for community engagement. The project has empowered local governments to provide essential services in these communities, significantly enhancing their resilience and recovery.

Through the Peace and Stabilization Operations Program (PSOPs), Canada and Alinea International Ltd. have contributed (over $9.7 million, 2019-2023) to the Support to the Canada-Ukraine Police Development Project, which was expanded to enhance the police reform support that Canada has provided to Ukraine since 2016. This was done through professional development, building trust in police and advancing the role of women in law enforcement. This project has contributed to the operation and expansion of training programs at 3 police academies, including distance learning, scenario-based training and the integration of gender strategies into practical operations. It has supported advocacy of gender equality throughout policing operations and the promotion of women leaders through the sustainability of the Ukrainian Association of Women in Law Enforcement as a professional network with hundreds of members. The project has also created a national psychological health strategy and a network of police psychological health peer practitioners who continue to provide support to front-line officers. It has expanded understanding and the role of police in their response to heightened incidents of domestic violence by developing learning resources and building the capacity of police to work with local stakeholders (shelters, social services, legal advisers, etc.) when addressing domestic violence.

In response to Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian nuclear facilities, Canada’s Weapons Threat Reduction Program funded ($2 million, 2022-2024) the Strengthening nuclear security, safety and safeguards in Ukraine project through the International Atomic Energy Agency. This support has enhanced the effectiveness of Ukrainian regulators and operators in terms of safeguarding nuclear sites in the country by providing technical expertise and equipment to reduce security threats, especially at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. 

As part of Canada’s cooperation through the G7 Rapid Response Mechanism, the Office of Human Rights, Freedoms and Inclusions funded ($785,000, 2022-2023) the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace to launch the Info Integrity Ukraine project. This is a multi-stakeholder crisis-response network made up of G7 governments, social media platforms and civil society organizations to support the integrity of the Ukrainian information environment in the face of Russia’s unprecedented information war. The project pinpointed 27 solutions (more than double the target) to challenges faced in countering disinformation, including capacity building for improved influence monitoring, media literacy, and international networking and knowledge sharing, as well as online tools. The network now includes 70 representatives from 49 organizations in Ukraine and around the world.

Reforming security systems and reducing security threats

Canada funded the Supporting Justice and Peace in Mali project ($16.1 million, 2021-2025) in partnership with Avocats Sans Frontières Canada. The project aims to empower women, girls and other individuals living in vulnerable situations by enabling them to access the justice system, defend their human rights and participate in national reconciliation, peace-building and consolidation processes. Twelve cases of human rights violations have been brought before Mali’s courts and other international bodies as a direct result of this project. Canada’s support has also played an important role in the success of Mali’s Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, and contributed to 2 chapters on GBV in its final report, which incorporated elements from victims’ participation in the Commission’s fourth public hearing. Canada’s financial support to the International Criminal Court in its administration of the Trust Fund for Victims in Mali also contributed to the formal recognition of the specific harms that women have suffered, and as a result, women were given the same right to benefit from reparative measures as men.

Canada’s PSOPs, in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), funded the Supporting and Reinforcing the Establishment of the Haitian National Border Police project ($6.9 million, 2017-2023), which contributed to Haiti’s efforts to strengthen its security sector, namely the Haitian National Police (HNP), and reduce community violence in vulnerable Haitian communities. This included the following:  support to the HNP’s border security enforcement and management of the flow of migrants crossing land borders, support to the HNP to increase the number of women police officers within its ranks , and the means to address youth violence in Haiti by engaging and empowering youth and young adults to have a voice in community decision making.

In Iraq, the PSOPs, in partnership with the IOM, supported the Community Policing in Liberated Areas of Iraq project ($9 million, 2018-2023) by funding a range of activities aimed at rebuilding trust between law enforcement officials and communities in the Anbar, Diyala and Ninewa governorates. This project enhanced law enforcement officials’ ability to partner with communities to address security issues such as gender-sensitive policing, counter-trafficking measures and integrated border management. In the targeted communities, 97% of community members (30.1% of whom were women and 65.7% of whom were youth) and 100% of law enforcement officials reported a substantial improvement in trust and perceptions of security, exceeding the initial 30% target. Through the Counter-Terrorism Capacity Building Program, and in collaboration with the UN and the Government of Iraq (GoI), Canada also supported the GoI’s National Strategy to Combat Violent Extremism Conducive to Terrorism ($5.1 million, 2022-2024) to establish a coordination mechanism for addressing the repatriation of Iraqi nationals from northeast Syria. In 2022-2023, the project successfully met its annual targets, with 70% of stakeholders reporting an increased knowledge and understanding of how to implement the Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism (PVE) strategy in at-risk communities, along with improved awareness of gender mainstreaming in PVE programming. This learning opportunity led to increased stability and security in Iraq while reducing the risk of renewed violent extremism.

In 2022-2023, Canada’s Anti-Crime Capacity Building Program (ACCBP) supported Avocats sans Frontières by funding the Capacity building of institutional actors involved in the fight against human trafficking project ($1.1 million, 2020-2022) to strengthen the protection of human trafficking victims in Colombia, with a specific focus on women, children and members of 2SLGBTQI+ communities. This collaboration has resulted in the adoption of 4 new gender-sensitive practices that align with international standards. This includes delivering training workshops on effective, gender-based care for direct and indirect victims of human trafficking to the government employees who are responsible for their assistance, as well as implementing new practices at the Defensoría del Pueblo that are in line with international standards and a gender-based approach to combatting human trafficking in Colombia. In addition, 94% of Defensoría officials now recognize the importance of combatting human trafficking. Most notably, 85% of government institutions and civil society organizations (CSOs) reported significant improvements in the protection of victims’ rights, which exceeded the initial target of 75%. Eight-six percent of survey participants also noted substantial improvements in institutional responses, particularly those related to gender analysis for preventing and prosecuting human trafficking (survey respondents included civil servants and CSO representatives).

In 2022-2023, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) maintained its contribution to the Office of the United States Security Coordinator (USSC) for Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) through Op PROTEUS. The USSC was established in 2005 with a mandate to support Israeli-Palestinian security coordination and lead international assistance for PA security sector reform and capacity building. In 2022-2023, Canada remained the largest contributing nation to the USSC, sending 21 CAF personnel, 3 Canadian police officers, 1 Canadian civilian member who works within the Law Enforcement Directorate, 1 customs and border control officer and 1 legal adviser. Op PROTEUS promoted institutional reform within the Palestinian Authority Security Forces (PASF), empowered the Ministry of Interior and facilitated coordination between PASF and the Israeli Security Services. In 2022-23, Op PROTEUS focused more specifically on enhancing various PA security and emergency response forces’ operational capabilities, with specific emphasis placed on communications (developing radio capabilities), logistics (human resources reforms), policing (community policing), customs policing and legal frameworks (pension). There was also an increased emphasis on collaborating with Global Affairs Canada to enhance alignment of the Government of Canada’s programming in the region. Canada’s contribution to the USSC supported the PASF’s ability to establish and maintain peace and security, which was a precondition to enabling sustainable development that could include women’s participation.

Through the Canadian Police Arrangement, the RCMP’s International Police Peacekeeping and Peace Operations program deployed a total of over 60 Canadian police personnel through 9 international missions in 11 countries last year. These Canadian personnel directly supported efforts to prevent, address, investigate and prosecute sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). For example, Canadian personnel deployed to the Specialized Police Team on SGBV within the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo supported local law enforcement efforts to counter SGBV among vulnerable populations. Furthermore, Canadian police officers deployed to the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti provided mentorship and strategic advice on gender mainstreaming and SGBV to senior and mid-level HNP management.

Strengthening international organizations’ peace and security efforts

The Elsie Initiative was launched by Canada in 2017 to increase women’s meaningful participation in UN peace operations. As the initiative’s co-chair and its biggest donor, Canada continued to support the Elsie Initiative Fund for Uniformed Women in Pease Operations in 2022-2023. This included providing financial incentives to countries contributing troops and police units with a high percentage of women in operationally significant roles. For example, the Senegal National Police deployed a gender-strong unit to the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated StabUNilization Mission in Mali in August 2022, and the Ghana Armed Forces deployed a gender-strong unit to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon in September 2022. Both units included substantial representation of women overall, including in leadership positions.

This helps strengthen the child protection staff’s capacity to fulfill its sole responsibility to protect and promote the rights of children in armed conflict.

Stories of change

Volume 2

Introduction

Volume 2 of the Report to Parliament on the Government of Canada’s International Assistance 2022-2023 provides information on Canada’s engagement with three international financial institutions (IFIs)^{Footnote 1}: the World Bank Group (Section A), the International Monetary Fund (Section B) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (Section C). Such information responds to various reporting requirements under the Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Agreement (EBRD) Act.

IFIs provide financial and technical assistance to developing country governments, and in some cases private sector actors in these countries, to support poverty reduction and long-term economic development. These investments cover a wide array of sectors, including education, health, public administration, infrastructure, financial and private sector development, agriculture, and environmental and natural resource management. Some IFIs, including the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group, also support developing countries with policy advice, research and analysis, and capacity-development activities.

Canada provides core contributions to support IFI operations and activities, while also providing funds for specific projects. Canada also actively contributes to the development of IFI policies and provides oversight of IFI financial activities through membership on Boards of Governors and Boards of Directors, the latter bodies dealing with day-to-day decisions. Canada is also involved in the work of various internal committees and engages in meaningful dialogue with other shareholders.

In order to provide strategic direction for its engagement with IFIs, Canada develops key objectives that are informed by Canada’s commitment to multilateralism, foreign policy, and development priorities, and general principles of good governance.

Section A: Canada’s engagement in World Bank Group operations

The World Bank Group’s (WBG) mission is to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030 and boost shared prosperity on a livable planet through inclusive, sustainable economic growth and development. Canada is a founding member of the WBG, which has 189 member countries, and holds a permanent seat on the 25-member Board of Executive Directors. The Canadian Executive Director represents a constituency on the Board that includes Ireland and 11 Commonwealth Caribbean countries. Canada’s largest annual contribution to the World Bank is to the International Development Association (IDA), the Bank’s concessional fund, which provides low interest loans or grants to the poorest member countries. Canada is the sixth largest donor to this fund since its creation in 1960 and has contributed US$14.5 billion to IDA since its inception.

During the reporting period, the WBG provided nearly US$122.9 billion in financing across 90 countries to address the multiple and overlapping crises facing developing countries, including the global food and energy crisis resulting from Russia's unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine. Rising debt burdens, inflation, conflict, and the increasingly severe impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss put at risk progress towards eradicating extreme poverty and bolstering shared prosperity. During the reporting period, the WBG increased its support for climate change mitigation and adaptation, with climate finance reaching a record high of US$29.4 billion, or 40 percent of total financing. The WBG also accelerated the preparation of Country Climate and Development Reports, which are used to advise governments on policy actions to adapt to and mitigate the worst climate impacts. The WBG was on track to fulfill its commitment to align all new financing operations with the Paris Agreement goals as of July 1, 2023. In addition, the WBG continues to work with partners to ensure that countries are better prepared for future pandemics through stronger health systems and better access to financing, including through the Pandemic Fund, with $50 million in support from Canada.

In fall 2022, the WBG began a significant reform effort to evolve its mission statement, operating model, and financial capacity to better address the challenges facing developing countries. This entails a greater focus on global challenges, like climate change and biodiversity loss, pandemics, and fragility, conflict and violence. Canada strongly supports the evolution of the WBG and the Bank’s new mission, “to end extreme poverty and boost prosperity on a livable planet.” The WBG has also taken significant steps to optimize its balance sheet in order to maximize development impact and generate the resources needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. At the 2023 Spring Meetings, Governors endorsed new measures to increase the WBG’s financial capacity by approximately $50 billion over the next 10 years. Canada has been a key proponent of these efforts, , which are aligned with the recommendations of the G20 Independent Review of MDBs’ Capital Adequacy Frameworks, and is encouraging the WBG to consider further measures to unlock additional financial capacity to support developing countries.

Reporting requirements

The Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act came into force in 1985 to govern Canada’s engagement with the Bretton Woods institutions: the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank Group (that is, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Development Association, the International Finance Corporation, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes). The Bretton Woods institutions constitute important channels through which Canada delivers international assistance and supports global economic and financial stability.

As laid out in sections 13 and 14 of the Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act, the Minister of Finance is required to table an annual report in Parliament that provides a general summary of operations under the Act and details of operations that directly affect Canada, along with communiqués issued by the institutions’ governing committees. Sections A and B meet these reporting requirements.

For more information, refer to the text of the Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act on Justice Canada’s website: Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act.

Governance and representation

Canada’s capital subscriptions and shareholding The World Bank Group is governed by member countries, each of which owns shares of the agencies that make up the World Bank Group. Decision-making power is exercised primarily by countries, through their representative on the Board of Governors and their Executive Directors.

Canada is among the 10 largest shareholders at the World Bank Group. Since the World Bank’s creation in 1945, Canada has contributed a total of US$9.2 billion in capital subscriptions to the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and US$14.5 billion in contributions to the International Development Association (IDA) (see Table 1).

Canada’s current voting power ranges from 2.5% to 3.45% within the Bank’s different institutions. Voting power at the Bank is a function of the shareholdings held by a country. A small share of a member’s voting power is also determined by basic votes, which are distributed equally among all members.

Information on the World Bank Group’s 2022-2023 fiscal year (July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023) is provided in the financial statements of each entity. Further information on the WBG’s performance can be found on its Results webpage.

Canada at the Board of Governors

Each member appoints a Governor to represent it on the Board of Governors, the highest authority governing the World Bank Group. Governors are responsible for core institutional decisions, such as admitting or suspending members, increasing or decreasing the Bank’s authorized capital stock, determining the distribution of net income, and reviewing financial statements and budgets. Canada’s Governor at the World Bank Group during the reporting period was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland. During the reporting period Leslie MacLean, Canada’s former Deputy Minister of International Development, was Canada’s Alternate Governor at the World Bank Group. Chris MacLennan, Canada’s current Deputy Minister of International Development was appointed Alternate WBG Governor on October 10, 2023.

Canada at the Executive Board

Governors delegate responsibility for the day-to-day running of the organization to 25 full-time Executive Directors, located at the WBG’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. Executive Directors are appointed for two years. They each represent a constituency, which can include more than one country. Canada holds one of the 25 seats on the Executive Board and represents a constituency that is also composed of Ireland and 11 Caribbean countries. Representatives of the governments within the constituency provide advice to the Executive Director on issues discussed at the Executive Board. Canada’s Executive Director to the WBG during the reporting period was Katharine Rechico, who was appointed in February 2022.

The Executive Board usually makes decisions by consensus. In the event of a formal vote, however, the relative voting power of individual Executive Directors is based on the shares held by the constituencies they represent. Further information on Canada’s Executive Director’s office can be found on the World Bank website.

To learn more about the governance of the Executive Board, please visit the World Bank Group’s Board of Directors’ webpage.

Canada at the Development Committee

By virtue of its significant shareholding, Canada’s Governor is also accorded a seat at the Development Committee of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank and IMF. The committee meets twice a year, at the Spring Meetings and the Annual Meetings (held in the Fall). The Development Committee is a ministerial-level forum of the World Bank Group and the IMF for intergovernmental consensus-building on development issues and the financial resources required to promote economic development in developing countries.

In 2022-2023, Canada’s Governor tabled two Development Committee statements on behalf of Canada’s constituency, in October 2022 and April 2023. The Governor’s statements highlighted Canada’s priorities at the WBG, including advancing reforms to optimize the financial capacity of the Bank and strengthen its ability to respond to global challenges like climate change. The Statement’s also highlighted Canada’s support for Ukraine and other priorities such as climate action, biodiversity protection, and gender equality. Statements by all Governors can be found on the Development Committee webpage.

Canada’s financial contributions to the World Bank Group in 2022-2023

Canada is an important provider of funding to the World Bank Group. In 2022-2023, Canada made the following contributions, which are reported as Canadian official development assistance:

IDA contribution: $486.9 million grant

IDA contribution: $486.9 million grant IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 75 poorest countries, 39 of which are in Africa. Strongly aligned with Canada’s international assistance priorities, IDA-financed operations focus on issues such as primary education, basic health services and clean water and sanitation. The most recent replenishment of IDA, IDA20, covers the period July 2022 to June 2025 and focuses on areas that reflect new challenges. This involves five special themes – human capital; climate change; gender and development; fragility, conflict and violence; and jobs and economic transformation, as well as four cross-cutting issues of governance and institutions; crisis preparedness; debt; and technology. IDA provides countries with low-interest loans, interest-free loans and grants based on a country’s level of income and record of success in managing their economy and their ongoing IDA projects.

During the reporting period of July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023, Canada provided a grant contribution of $486.9 million, as agreed under the IDA20 replenishment. These contributions support IDA’s efforts to enhance aid effectiveness, finance large regional projects such as infrastructure projects, and provide special assistance for fragile states, while ensuring countries do not take on unsustainable levels of debt.

World Bank Group’s Ukraine Relief, Recovery, Reconstruction and Reform Trust Fund

In December 2022, Canada announced it would provide $115 million to help repair Kyiv’s power grid. In making this commitment to Ukraine through the World Bank’s Ukraine Relief, Recovery, Reconstruction and Reform Trust Fund, Canada became the first G7 country to meet the June 2022 G7 Leaders’ commitment to explore opportunities to use revenues collected through tariff measures against Russia to assist Ukraine. The full $115 million was disbursed on March 31, 2023.

Multilateral debt relief through the World Bank: $56.8 million

Under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI), the World Bank, IMF and African Development Fund (ADF) agreed to cancel 100% of eligible debts owed by heavily indebted poor countries. At the G8 Summit in Gleneagles, United Kingdom, in 2005, Canada and other donor countries agreed to fully compensate the World Bank, IMF and ADF for the debts they cancelled on behalf of poor countries, so as not to undermine the ability of these institutions to provide new financial support to low-income countries. Canada’s total commitment over the 50-year lifespan of the MDRI is $2.5 billion and payments are made annually. Debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative and the MDRI has substantially reduced debt burdens in recipient countries. During the July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023 reporting period, Canada provided $56.8 million to the World Bank Group for the MDRI.

World Bank Group trust funds and financial intermediary funds: $682.08 million

World Bank Group trust funds and financial intermediary funds (FIFs) are effective instruments for channeling donor funding to address key strategic development issues at the country, regional or global level. In particular, trust funds leverage bank funding for development programs, including in post-disaster and post-conflict situations; enable donor and private sector financiers of development activities to partner with the Bank, consistent with harmonization objectives; build capacity to work in innovative areas; and work with civil society organizations. Trust funds can either be single- or multi-donor. Canada contributes to both types, with the majority of its contributions going to multi-donor trust funds. FIFs enable the international community to provide a direct and coordinated response to global priorities such as pandemics, climate change and food security. FIFs often involve innovative financing and governance arrangements as well as flexible designs which enable funds to be raised from multiple sources, both sovereign and private.

Canada’s engagement with the World Bank Group reflects a strong focus on:

• Canada's Feminist International Assistance Policy, which puts the empowerment of women and girls at the centre of its development efforts;
• the poorest countries and countries in conditions of fragility and conflict;
• global public goods, such as health and climate change mitigation; and,
• country operations.

Global Affairs Canada manages Canada’s trust fund and FIF relationships at the World Bank Group. Table 2 provides a list of Global Affairs Canada trust fund and FIF disbursements in 2022-2023.

Objectives and results of Canada’s WBG trust fund and FIF investments

As Canada continues to engage with the World Bank Group through trust fund arrangements, the effectiveness of these partnerships is assessed to ensure that development outcomes are being achieved. Results from select trust funds include:

• Resilient Landscapes and Livelihoods for Women in Ethiopia
• Accelerating Coal Transition Program
• Gender Responsive Planning & Budgeting in Indonesia

In 2022-2023, Canada contributed $4.5 million to the Resilient Landscapes and Livelihoods for Women in Ethiopia, which aims to improve climate resilience, land productivity and carbon storage while increasing access to diversified livelihood activities in selected rural watersheds. Since its inception in 2019, this project of $20 million over 5 years has worked to create economic opportunities for women smallholder farmers and address land tenure issues—particularly for disadvantaged women. In addition, it seeks to enhance the resilience of communities to tackle climate change and its negative impacts in the future by adopting sustainable land management practices. The project reduces the impacts of land degradation, improves agricultural productivity and ultimately contributes to greater food security for vulnerable households across Ethiopia. Results to date include: 431,023 farmers, almost half of whom are women, have adopted sustainable land management practices. Over 1 million households (68% women) were issued second-level land certificates that update existing land records and improve tenure security of smallholder farmers; 264,390 farmers (43% women) participated in income-generating activities supported by the project; and 1,772 Common-Interest Groups (CIGs) were established and supported to diversify community income generating activities such as trading, poultry farming, beekeeping and honey production, and fruits and vegetable cultivation in their backyards.

In addition, Canada contributed $320 million in the reporting period to the Climate Investment Funds’ Accelerating Coal Transition (CIF-ACT) Investment Program. The CIF is a FIF housed at the World Bank; the ACT program operates within the CIF. CIF-ACT works to accelerate the transition from coal-powered to clean energy while ensuring a holistic, integrated, socially-inclusive and gender-equal just transition in recipient countries. India, Indonesia, Philippines and South Africa are recipients for the first phase of the project. This total $1 billion investment builds support at the local level to reconsider the development of new coal plants and accelerate the retirement of existing coal assets. It fosters new economic activities fueled by new clean energy sources for those impacted by the transition. The program works with public sector utilities and private sector operators to define transition pathways while ensuring the pursuit of a fair and inclusive approach to move away from coal. To date, the program has contributed to: increasing environmentally sustainable coal-to-clean transitions; increasing social and economic conditions for workers, particularly women and vulnerable populations, affected by the coal-to-clean transition; and increasing adoption and implementation by CIF-ACT recipient countries of equitable and gender-responsive policies and strategies for coal-to-clean transition.

In 2022-2023, Canada also provided $2 million in support of the Gender Responsive Planning & Budgeting in Indonesia, a multi-donor trust fund housed at the World Bank that works to achieve gender-responsive public financial management that meets the differentiated needs of both women and men. It strengthens national public financial management programs to better target public spending to reduce gender gaps. Efforts focus on improving the capacity in budget analysis, including gender-responsive budgeting of relevant government staff, as well as developing tools capable of capturing gender disaggregated information and linking it to monitoring and performance information for maternal mortality programs at the Ministry of Health. This project is part of Phase III of the World Bank’s Multi-Donor Trust Fund for Public Financial Management that includes the European Union and Switzerland. Results to date include: completed revised Gender Responsive Budgeting tools that included Gender Analysis Pathway and Gender Budget Statement elements; and published the final report of the 2020 Gender Responsive Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) Assessment for Indonesia on the PEFA website, using the PEFA framework.

World Bank procurement from Canada

The Trade Commissioner Service (TCS) works closely with Canadian companies to increase awareness and pursuit of multi-sectoral procurement opportunities at the IFIs. The TCS maintains the Offices of Liaison with International Financial Institutions (OLIFIs). The Washington, D.C., OLIFI helps businesses access WBG procurement opportunities.

Due to data availabilities, this section reflects contract awards for World Bank operational procurement only, and does not include sub-contractor information. It also does not include information for contracts awarded to subsidiaries of Canadian companies which are headquartered outside of Canada.

Communiqués of the Development Committee of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank and IMF (as required under the Bretton Woods Act)

World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings 2022: Development Committee Statement by Chair

April 12, 2022

1. The Development Committee (DC) recalls that on March 2, the United Nations General Assembly by a majority of 141 countries adopted the resolution ES-11/1 “Aggression against Ukraine” that “deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in violation of Article 2 (4) of the Charter” and “demands that the Russian Federation immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine”. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote; five countries voted against the resolution; some countries expressed no position. The DC recognizes that Russia’s war against Ukraine has massive humanitarian consequences and detrimental repercussions for the global economy through direct and indirect channels. The DC calls for a speedy resolution through diplomatic channels, including “political dialogue, negotiations, mediation and other peaceful means”, and for greater international cooperation and strengthened multilateralism to prevent fragmentation and safeguard global economic integration.
2. The global economy faces tighter and more volatile financial conditions as well as compounding crises related to public health, human capital, climate change and biodiversity, food and energy insecurity, debt, refugees and internal migration, and fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV). The impacts will be felt most by low-income countries (LICs) and middle-income countries (MICs), especially their most vulnerable people, including women and children. Economic recovery is likely to remain at risk amid geopolitical tensions, with investment, trade, and global economic growth affected by commodity price shocks, supply chain bottlenecks, inflationary pressures, and disruptions in remittances. The possible emergence of new COVID-19 variants underscores the Quote from UN Resolution ES-11/1.^{Footnote 16} Idem. need to prepare for further risks from the pandemic and address the uneven deployment of vaccines. Tax evasion, corruption, as well as illicit financial flows, also remain concerns. We ask the WBG and the IMF to remain vigilant, coordinate actions, and orient their country engagement toward a green, resilient, and inclusive economic recovery, while remaining focused on the twin goals of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity and helping countries achieve the SDGs.
3. The sharp rise in prices for food, energy, and other commodities is weakening food systems and hitting the most vulnerable the hardest, undermining poverty alleviation efforts and exacerbating inequality both in LICs and MICs. Higher costs for fertilizers and supply constraints for staple crops, combined with water scarcity, floods, droughts, and other climate change impacts especially affect small farmers and threaten global food security. We ask the WBG to use all its tools to increase its financing, policy and analytical support to help countries address immediate food security and social protection needs; we also urge it to coordinate closely with MDBs, WFP and other UN agencies, the WTO, the IMF, and other stakeholders on the global response to the crises. We call on the WBG to continue supporting countries in implementing policies to increase resilience amid reduced food supplies, while working to address the underlying vulnerabilities that have exacerbated food insecurity, and to dissuade policy makers from any actions that could negatively impact food markets.
4. The war in Ukraine and other conflicts in recent years have forcibly displaced millions and spurred a rapid rise in the global refugee population, placing strain on host communities. We applaud the WBG for its commitment to address fragility, conflict, and violence; and for nearly tripling IDA financing to FCV in the last five years. We call for enhanced field presence and financial support in such situations. We call on the WBG to: continue responding to development needs during crises, so that it can help alleviate food insecurity, malnutrition, forced displacement, and gender-based violence; provide emergency income support; restore and improve inclusive access to education, health, and basic services such as water and energy; and expand economic opportunities and jobs, with emphasis on women and girls. We welcome the continued implementation of the WBG FCV strategy and the IMF recently adopted fragile and conflict affected states strategy. We encourage the WBG to continue working across the humanitarian-development-peace nexus—with governments, the UN, the IMF, and other partners, including bilateral, multilateral, and nongovernmental organizations—to analyze the drivers of FCV, with a focus on prevention and resilience, and to deliver critical services. We recognize that FCV situations are deepening, with crises emerging in both LICs and MICs. We ask the WBG to continue responding with flexible and innovative policy and financing options, and an enhanced footprint, with due attention to its social and fiduciary standards, so that resources may be used strategically and effectively.
5. Responding to the COVID-19 crisis remains a critical priority. Though vaccination rates have risen, setbacks to development gains have hit the neediest, particularly in small states and FCV situations, necessitating tailored, countryfocused interventions. We congratulate the WBG’s crisis response efforts and unprecedented financial support, delivering $204 billion in 2020-2021, including for health, education, and social protection to address the significant impact on human capital in LICs and MICs. We commend the extraordinary IDA20 replenishment, totaling $93 billion, which was agreed a year early and will be critical to support these efforts in the poorest countries and to maintain a focus on long-term goals. We thank the WBG, together with the Multilateral Leaders’ Task Force (WBG, IMF, WHO and WTO), for catalyzing international actions aimed at fast, equitable vaccine delivery. We ask the WBG to continue using its convening power and financial leverage to help deploy vaccines, increase manufacturing, invest in diagnostics and therapeutics, and strengthen health systems, all of which will help developing countries accelerate economic recovery. Based on recent experiences and lessons, and in close coordination with its international health partners, we urge the WBG to focus further financial, policy and analytical support to helping countries achieve their vaccination goals, strengthen health systems’ capacity, move toward universal health coverage, and support resilience, prevention, and preparedness for future pandemics.
6. The multiple, overlapping crises will have long-term consequences. We ask the WBG to remain focused on supporting debt sustainability and transparency, including through implementation of the G20 Common Framework, together with the Paris Club to support LICs; as well as through efforts to address debt vulnerabilities in MICs. We welcome the WBG’s Climate Change Action Plan, which will help it align with the Paris Agreement and bolster its efforts to promote biodiversity, improve access to energy and clean water, and support a just transition to a low-carbon economy, adapted to each country’s circumstances. We also welcome the WBG’s $26 billion climate change financing in 2021. We also encourage the WBG to: enable private capital mobilization and job creation, including through domestic capital markets development; coordinate with the IMF on the new Resilience and Sustainability Trust and explore options to utilize Special Drawing Rights (SDRs); expand fiscal space, including through domestic resource mobilization; step up financing for the Global Public Goods (GPGs) agenda, while recognizing MICs’ key role in its implementation; lead on gender equality, with financial, policy and technical support; enhance human capital through investments in education, health, and social protection; invest in infrastructure and promote digitalization, including through the private sector; and support all clients for a green, resilient, and inclusive recovery, which will be key in reversing development losses and reducing inequalities. We look forward to fruitful discussions in these areas, with an emphasis on debt vulnerabilities, GPGs, digital transformation, climate change, and fragility.

World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings 2022: Development Committee Statement by Chair

October 12, 2022

1. The Development Committee recalls that on March 2, the United Nations General Assembly by a majority of 141 countries adopted the resolution ES-11/1 “Aggression against Ukraine” that “deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in violation of Article 2 (4) of the Charter” and “demands that the Russian Federation immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine”. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote; five countries voted against the resolution; some countries expressed no position.
2. The Development Committee recognizes that since our last meeting in April, Russia’s war against Ukraine has continued with massive humanitarian consequences and detrimental repercussions for the global economy through direct and indirect channels. The Development Committee acknowledges that on October 12, the United Nations General Assembly by a majority of 143 countries adopted the resolution ES-11/L.5 “Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the Charter of the United Nations” that expresses its strong support for “the de-escalation of the current situation and a peaceful resolution of the conflict through political dialogue, negotiation, mediation and other peaceful means” .
3. The Development Committee reiterates its call for greater international cooperation and strengthened multilateralism to prevent fragmentation and safeguard global economic integration.
4. The global economy continues to be negatively affected by multiple ongoing crises. Russia’s war against Ukraine has exacerbated the challenges from these crises. The lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health and education crises, rising debt, climate change and biodiversity loss, food insecurity, energy-access deficits, fragility, conflict and resulting migration, supply-chain and trade disruptions have steepened the slowdown in global growth, and caused reversals in poverty reduction and a rise in inequality. Persistent high global inflation could further tighten financial conditions, increase borrowing costs, and lead to financial stress. In the context of tight fiscal space, there is a need to improve the efficiency and targeting of existing financial resources, and address inefficient and distortive subsidies, while protecting the most vulnerable. Moreover, the recent spike in prices is likely to worsen energy and food insecurity and malnutrition. Intensified multilateral cooperation is essential to address these challenges.
5. We ask the World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to continue to work with policymakers on an ambitious policy response and financing programs that boost inclusive and sustainable economic growth, create jobs, and expand social protection, while strengthening macroeconomic and financial stability, domestic resource mobilization, and cooperation in combating tax avoidance and evasion, and the quality of spending; curbing corruption, illicit financial flows, and profit-shifting; reducing debt vulnerabilities; promoting trade; and mobilizing larger volumes of private capital. A renewed focus on protecting and improving the well-being of poor households and the most vulnerable is needed, in line with the goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity in a sustainable manner, while also contributing to the achievement of the SDGs.
6. We commend the WBG’s global crisis response package, which sets out the framework for an operational response to the multiple overlapping crises, including up to $170 billion through June 2023 to address food insecurity; large learning and job losses; climate mitigation and adaption; and other long-term development challenges. These operations must be underpinned by a green, resilient, and inclusive development approach. We welcome the WBG’s flexibility in responding with speed and scale across all countries and regions and ask the Bank to ensure enhanced supervision and strengthened field presence in order to manage the environmental, social, and fiduciary risks. We are encouraged by the WBG’s commitment to gender equality through its operational and technical support to clients. We look forward to further progress on this front and to an updated Gender Strategy. We stress the importance of continuing to invest in adequate, efficient, and equitable education, health, and social protection systems. We support the role of the WBG in promoting a vibrant private sector that drives job creation and economic transformation—both of which are key to an inclusive and sustained recovery and development. Based on the WBG’s principles of serving all clients, we ask management for an agenda to address these development challenges for MICs.
7. We welcome the approval of the Financial Intermediary Fund (FIF) for Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response (PPR), and the $1.4 billion in contributions pledged to the fund so far. Supported by the G20 countries, as well as other donors, and in partnership with the WHO, the FIF will allocate financing where investments are most urgently needed to bolster pandemic PPR and fill key capacity gaps. We ask the WBG to continue strengthening coordinated, inclusive, and expert-based action with multilateral partners for a One-Health approach. This and other global health initiatives are essential to building the core capacities needed to prevent and contain future pandemics, while also strengthening public health systems and moving towards universal health coverage.
8. We are deeply concerned by the recent interlinked shocks to food and energy markets, exacerbated by Russia’s war in Ukraine. We congratulate the WBG for its rapid and ongoing response, and call on the institution to continue to work with client countries to protect vulnerable people, especially women, by: i) scaling up social safety nets to meet food, nutrition, and energy needs; ii) improving the production capacities and consumption efficiency of food and energy value chains through diversification, phasing out inefficient subsidies and policies, and avoiding waste and overconsumption; iii) promoting trade flows in the food, agricultural, and energy sectors, trade finance, and regional integration; and iv) stepping up investments to support agricultural technology and improve the resilience of food and energy systems. We welcome the WBG’s commitment to deliver $30 billion for food security, including efforts to encourage sustainable food and fertilizer production, address storage and loss reduction, facilitate trade, and support vulnerable households and producers. We welcome the IMF’s new Food Shock Window, which will help countries deal with emergency balance-of-payments pressures adversely impacting food security. We also welcome the coordinated action on food security and nutrition among the FAO, IFAD, IMF, WBG, WFP, and WTO, and other multilateral initiatives to respond to the crisis and protect the most vulnerable, especially in situations of fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV).
9. We stress that climate change and biodiversity loss will further hinder development objectives. Therefore, addressing climate, biodiversity, and sustainable development is more critical than ever for all countries. Integrated climate action will require larger and more coordinated financing from all sources, consistent and integrated strategies, and a conducive enabling environment. Transitions to a low-greenhouse gas emission, climate-resilient economy will require significant annual investments in the short- to medium-term in all client countries, including FCV, and small states, which face immense challenges in financing. We recognize the WBG’s role as the largest multilateral provider of climate financing in developing countries. We commend its record delivery of over $30 billion in climate finance in the past fiscal year, in addition to $1.9 billion in WBG-managed external resources. We encourage the WBG to continue to implement the Climate Change Action Plan. We strongly welcome the WBG’s pioneering work to deliver Country Climate and Development Reports (CCDRs) as diagnostic tools, which will help countries identify the various impactful actions to deliver on the climate agenda, the development agenda, and their Nationally Determined Contributions. We call on the WBG and other MDBs to play a significant role in aligning with the Paris Agreement. We ask the WBG, in collaboration with others, to support: i) the development of countries’ long-term strategies for investing in climate action; ii) the preparation, screening, and structuring of reforms and projects for bankable, climate-resilient investments that mobilize private capital and foster a business environment aligned with low-carbon and resilient development; iii) increased concessional and blended finance for adaptation and mitigation; and iv) bold investment in high-quality, sustainable infrastructure that enables a just energy transition. We look forward to the discussion and goals that emerge from COP27 and COP15. We recall and reaffirm the commitment made by developed countries to the goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion per year by 2020 and annually through 2025 to address the needs of developing countries, in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and stress the importance of meeting that goal fully as soon as possible.
10. We are deeply concerned about the global learning crisis, which has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The large learning losses among poorer and younger students are expected to lower future earnings, weaken productivity, increase poverty, and deepen inequality, with adolescent girls often facing greater risks. We commend the WBG’s work to prioritize and invest in learning and skills to safeguard human capital, education systems, and future productivity. We ask the WBG to close data gaps and continue its focus on foundational skills for all children and on teacher and curriculum quality. We also encourage the WBG to invest in youth through secondary and vocational education, and entrepreneurial training and skills—in particular for girls and marginalized groups. Digital technology should be leveraged to deliver quality education, enhance skills, and share knowledge to prepare for future crises.
11. We look forward to the successful implementation of IDA20, which will deliver a record $93 billion package to IDA clients, thanks to the generosity of partners and IDA’s strong financial model. The financing will support efforts to help LICs and eligible MICs, particularly in FCV settings, respond to the multiple crises and build a greener, and more resilient and inclusive future. We welcome the important steps the WBG has undertaken through the IDA20 commitment to develop and implement a methodology for tracking nature-positive investments.
12. We encourage the WBG and the IMF to work closely with policymakers to address rising public and private debt vulnerabilities by providing tailored policy advice to LICs and MICs to strengthen fiscal policy, public investment programs, and public and private debt management frameworks. We recognize WBG and IMF collaboration, within their respective mandates, together with the Paris Club, to support the implementation of the Common Framework for eligible countries in need of debt restructuring. We reaffirm the importance of joint efforts by all actors, including private creditors, to continue working to enhance debt management and transparency. We welcome the WBG’s ongoing work to improve data accuracy through enhanced reporting.
13. We ask WBG Management to engage with the Board of Executive Directors in a systematic dialogue to enhance our shared vision for the WBG, including strategic priorities, strengths and gaps, incentives, operational approach, and financial capacity to bolster and scale the response to global challenges and move toward achieving the Twin Goals and the SDGs in all client countries.
14. In this context, we ask WBG Management to identify gaps in the Bank Group’s current institutional and operational framework and deliver a work program by the end of the year, for consideration by the Executive Board. This work program should be aimed at strengthening the WBG’s role and capacity to continue to be responsive to the evolving needs of all client countries. This should include designing pertinent financial reforms to responsibly make the most efficient use of the WBG’s balance sheets and generate new resources and contribute to strengthening coordination and collaboration across the broader international financial architecture, as well as incentivizing country demand, and addressing any operational obstacles to the WBG’s effective response. Beyond deploying its own finance, the WBG also has an important role to play in mobilizing private sector finance and continuing to mobilize substantial concessional resources for IDA towards meeting the substantially increased challenges of LICs, especially the FCV and in Africa, generating and sharing knowledge and data, and promoting policy reforms, including for domestic resource mobilization.
15. WBG Management should report on the status of this dialogue by the Spring Meetings 2023.
16. We request that WBG Management explore the recommendations of the Independent Review of MDB Capital Adequacy Frameworks (CAF), commissioned by the G20, to make the most efficient use of the Group’s balance sheets to increase lending capacity, while preserving long-term financial sustainability, robust credit ratings (i.e. AAA ratings), and preferred creditor status. We ask that Management accelerate its engagement with the Board of Executive Directors and follow up before the end of the year with a roadmap for systematically assessing and discussing each of the recommendations presented in the CAF report, including regarding their applicability to the WBG institutions. We expect Management to develop an implementation plan for consideration by the shareholders in good time before the Spring Meetings 2023, and to follow up with implementation of the agreed-upon priority actions in 2023.

Section B: Canada’s engagement in International Monetary Fund operations

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the central multilateral institution in the international financial system. Its role is to provide global economic surveillance, capacity development assistance, and financial assistance to countries experiencing unsustainable external imbalances and related economic difficulties.

Canada has been an influential member of the IMF since 1945, as one of the original 29 signatories to the IMF Articles of Agreement. Since then, the IMF has grown to include a near-global membership of 190 member countries. Canada is engaged in all aspects of IMF governance and activities, and plays a collaborative role with its international partners to ensure that the Fund is effectively fulfilling its mandate. A healthy and stable global economy creates more jobs for Canadians, promotes stable prices for goods and services, and improves our standard of living.

With Canada’s support, the IMF has taken a number of actions to assist Ukraine in the face of Russia’s unjustifiable and illegal invasion:

• In April 2022, the IMF created a new Administered Account for Ukraine, championed by Canada. The Account allows IMF member countries to provide flexible bilateral financing directly to the Government of Ukraine. Canada, Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands have all made significant contributions through this facility so far;
• The IMF created a new Food Shock Window to permit Ukraine and other eligible countries suffering from significantly higher food prices as a result of Russia’s invasion to access additional emergency financing. On October 7, 2022, Ukraine received US$1.3 billion from the IMF through this facility. Other affected countries, including in Africa and the Americas such as Malawi, South Sudan, and Haiti, have received financing through this window as well.
• On March 31, 2023, the IMF approved a new 4-year US$15.3 billion support program for Ukraine.

This response from the IMF is a demonstration of the international community’s support for Ukraine, and helped the Government of Ukraine sustain government operations and continue to provide essential services. Canada has been, and will remain, a strong advocate for Ukraine at the IMF.

During the reporting period, the IMF continued to be an integral part of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic, providing an unprecedented volume of emergency financing to its members in order to meet urgent financing needs associated with the pandemic. On August 2, 2021, the IMF’s Board of Governors approved a general allocation of new Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) equivalent to US$650 billion—the largest in IMF history. This allocation helped supplement member countries’ foreign exchange reserves and increased global liquidity. The IMF also provided policy advice and technical assistance to its members throughout the crisis to help them address urgent issues such as cash management, financial supervision, cybersecurity, and economic governance. These activities helped stabilize the global economy and will promote a stronger, more sustainable, and more inclusive recovery.

Following the SDR allocation, Canada and other G7/G20 Leaders agreed to magnify the impact of the allocation by committing to channel US$100 billion to vulnerable and low-income countries. While Canada initially committed to channeling 20 percent of its SDR allocation, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland announced in April 2022 that Canada had not only met but exceeded its channeling commitment. During the reporting period, the total amount channeled represented about 40 per cent of Canada’s 2021 SDR allocation, including almost $3.5 billion of new commitments to the core IMF trusts (the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust - PRGT and the Resilience and Sustainability Trust - RST). Additional contributions made after the reporting period brings Canada’s total channeling commitment to nearly 50 per cent.

Governance and representation

Canada’s voting share

Member countries’ voting shares are based largely on their relative global economic weight and openness to international trade. Canada holds a 2.22 per cent IMF voting share, making Canada the 11th-largest member during the reporting period.

Canada at the Board of Governors

The IMF is accountable to its member countries through a number of mechanisms. The Board of Governors, composed of a Governor and an Alternate Governor appointed by each member country, is the IMF’s highest decision-making body. The Board of Governors is responsible for the most important institutional decisions required under the Articles of Agreement (e.g., approving quota increases, admitting new members, and amending Articles and by-laws). Canada’s Governor at the IMF during the reporting period was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland. The position of Alternate IMF Governor is currently held by Tiff Macklem, Governor of the Bank of Canada.

Canada at the Executive Board

The Board of Governors delegates authority over the IMF’s regular business to the 24-member Executive Board, which is chaired by the IMF’s Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. The constituency system allows the 24 Board members to represent all 190 member countries, making it easier to conduct day-to-day business.

Canada holds one of the 24 seats on the Executive Board and represents a constituency of 12 countries^{Footnote 5}. With all constituency members combined, the Executive Director for Canada holds a voting power of 3.37%—making it the 12th-largest constituency by voting share. Given Canada’s financial contributions and level of IMF engagement, a Canadian has always held the Executive Director position within this constituency. Canada’s Executive Director during the reporting period was Philip John Jennings. The Executive Director is supported by a staff of seconded individuals from the countries represented within our constituency.

The Executive Board usually operates on a consensus basis, so formal votes are rare. Canada contributes to the development of policy proposals before they are brought to the Board through informal discussions with staff and management, or through consultation with other members of the Executive Board.

To learn more about the governance, representation and accountability structures of the IMF, please visit the IMF’s Governance Structure website.

Canada at the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)

The IMFC advises and reports to the Board of Governors on international monetary and financial matters, and emerging issues of global importance. While it has no formal decision-making powers, it plays an important role in setting the strategic direction of the Fund. The composition of the IMFC mirrors that of the Executive Board, with Canada’s Minister of Finance occupying one of the 24 seats at the IMFC table. Nadia Calviño, Spain’s First Vice President and Minister for Economy and Digitalization, served as IMFC Chair for the reporting period. The IMFC usually meets twice a year, during the IMF-World Bank Annual and Spring Meetings, and usually issues communiqués providing strategic direction and policy guidance to the IMF Managing Director and the Executive Board. When the IMFC is not able to reach consensus on a communiqué, the IMFC Chair may release a statement.  The IMFC Chair’s Statements for the reporting period are included below and also published on the IMF website.^{Footnote 6} Canada's Minister of Finance also tables written statements on behalf of Canada’s constituency during the IMF-World Bank Annual and Spring Meetings that outline collective priorities for the activities of the Fund. The constituency’s statements for the reporting period are published on the IMF website.^{Footnote 7} 

IMF resources, lending, and capacity development

IMF financial resources

The IMF’s total financial resources are composed of both permanent and temporary resources. Members’ permanent quota^{Footnote 8} subscriptions are the primary component of IMF financial resources. These resources are supplemented by the New Arrangements to Borrow (NAB), a renewable multilateral borrowing arrangement (in which Canada participates along with 40 other members) that forms a second line of defence for the IMF. Additionally, the IMF maintains temporary bilateral borrowing arrangements (BBAs) with 42 members (including Canada), which serve as a third line of defence. In the event of a major global economic crisis, the Fund can draw on these multilateral and bilateral lines of credit after all other resources have been effectively depleted. Further information can be found on the IMF’s multilateral and bilateral borrowing website.

While the resources outlined above can be used to support the macroeconomic adjustment needs of any member country, the IMF also maintains trust funds to enable concessional lending to the poorest and most vulnerable members^{Footnote 9}. The Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT) is financed through loan and grant contributions from members such as Canada, as well as through IMF investment income.

In addition, in October 2022 Canada supported the creation of the new IMF Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST), which complements the Fund’s toolkit by providing longer-term affordable financing to low-income and vulnerable middle-income countries to address longer-term challenges, including climate change and pandemic preparedness. The RST is a loan-based trust with a governance and financial structure similar to the PRGT.

IMF financial operations are conducted in Special Drawing Rights (SDR)^{Footnote 10}, an international reserve asset created by the IMF to supplement the existing official reserves of member countries. Table 2 summarizes the IMF’s financial resources, and Canada’s commitments and financial position at the Fund as of April 30, 2023 (the end of the Fund’s fiscal year). For more information on IMF finances, see the IMF’s 2022 Annual Report of the Executive Board.

IMF lending programs

The IMF makes its resources available to help members finance temporary balance of payments problems while they implement economic policy adjustments. To provide this assistance, the IMF utilizes two types of lending arrangements: non-concessional lending that is available to all members, and concessional lending available to qualifying low-income and vulnerable member countries. Non-concessional lending is financed out of the Fund’s normal resources grouped under the General Resources Account (GRA), whereas concessional lending is financed out of the PRGT. The same approach is used with respect to the RST.

On September 30, 2022, the IMF launched its Food Shock Window (offering increased access until September 2023 to its emergency financing facilities) to help countries cope with balance of payments needs associated with the global food shock exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

On March 6, 2023, the IMF temporarily raised the limits on members’ annual and cumulative access to GRA lending, in the light of increased uncertainty and tighter financing conditions. These increased limits helped to ensure that member countries had sufficient access to IMF financing facilities. Further details on the IMF lending process and instruments are available on the IMF lending website.

Lending arrangements

During its 2022-23 fiscal year (May 1, 2022 to April 30, 2023) the IMF approved 16 new non-concessional lending arrangements totalling SDR 43.9 billion (approximately $80.3 billion). As at April 30, 2023, there were 28 active non-concessional arrangements with the Fund, with a total commitment of SDR 128.8 billion and total credit outstanding of SDR 96.7 billion (approximately $235.7 billion and $177 billion respectively).

The IMF also approved 10 new concessional arrangements under the PRGT, amounting overall to SDR 3.6 billion (approximately $6.6 billion). As at April 30, 2023, there were 24 active PRGT arrangements with a total committed amount of SDR 8.3 billion and total outstanding amount of SDR 16.6 billion (about $15.2 billion and $30.4 billion respectively). During the same period, IMF approved 5 arrangements under the new RST amounting to SDR 2.5 billion (about $4.6 billion).

Table 3 provides a summary of new IMF lending arrangements approved in 2022-23. A complete list of the IMF’s lending arrangements as of April 30, 2023 is available in its annual report and on the IMF Lending Arrangements website.^{Footnote 14}

Canada is a strong supporter of the IMF trusts, and in 2022-23 announced the completion of its $2.44 billion contribution to the IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST), being among the first countries to finalize and implement its RST agreement with the IMF. During the reporting period Canada also recalled its latest contribution to the PRGT first announced in 2021-22, which includes SDR 500 million in new loan commitments (brining total PRGT loan commitments to SDR 2 billion) and a $107 million grant.

Capacity development

For over 50 years, the IMF’s capacity development (CD) work has helped members strengthen the ability of domestic institutions to foster effective policies, leading to greater economic stability and growth. IMF CD activities are both internally and externally financed. They account for about a third of the IMF's total budget. As of April 30, 2023, total spending  for direct technical advice, policy-oriented training and peer learning in FY 2023 was US$337million. For more information, see IMF Capacity Development.

Canada’s contributions to capacity development

External partnerships allow the IMF to scale up its capacity building efforts for members in need. Canada has historically been among the largest external contributors to IMF CD activities, providing approximately US$119 million (approximately $161 million) since 2012 (see Table 5 for details). This support has helped low- and middle-income countries build capacity in areas such as central bank functions, public financial management, debt management, and financial sector development and oversight. Canadian-financed CD is generally delivered in three distinct ways:

1. Regional Technical Assistance Centres (RTACs):The IMF has developed a regionally tailored approach to CD delivery. In addition to the training offered at the IMF Institute for Capacity Development in Washington, D.C., the IMF operates seven regional training institutes and nine RTACs in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Central America, China, the Middle East, and the Pacific. Canada, as the largest donor to the Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre (CARTAC), has contributed nearly US$67 million (approximately $90.8 million) over the last 20 years. CARTAC provides specialized capacity development that is valued by participating Caribbean countries and territories. This is in line with Canada’s commitment to support small island developing states in the Caribbean. For more information, see IMF Regional Capacity Development Centers.
2. Country-directed initiatives:Member countries, other IFIs, and IMF project financing vehicles (e.g., RTACs, multi-donor trust funds, and country-specific trusts) can maintain “subaccounts” for targeted technical assistance initiatives and/or retaining a strategic reserve for rapid response to emerging priorities. Canada maintains a subaccount to support various CD activities in the Caribbean, Ukraine, the Middle East, and Africa.
3. Multi-donor trust funds:The IMF manages several thematic funds. Examples include the Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Fund, along with others that focus on improving data availability, public debt management, and other public financial management issues. Canada is also supporting the AML/CFT Thematic Trust Fund and the IMF-Somalia Trust Fund for Capacity Development. For more information, see Thematic Funds for Capacity Development.

Additional details on IMF operations (including IMF surveillance, lending, capacity building, and institutional governance) are available on the IMF website.

Chair’s Statements of the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the Board of Governors of the IMF (as required under the Bretton Woods Act)

Chair’s Statement of the Forty-Fifth Meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)

April 21, 2022

Chaired by Ms. Nadia Calviño, First Vice President of Spain and Minister for Economy and Digitalization

The IMFC recalls that on March 2, the United Nations General Assembly by a majority of 141 countries adopted the resolution ES-11/1 “Aggression against Ukraine” that “deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in violation of Article 2 (4) of the Charter” and “demands that the Russian Federation immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine”. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote; five countries voted against the resolution; some countries expressed no position.

The IMFC recognizes that Russia’s war against Ukraine has massive humanitarian consequences and detrimental repercussions for the global economy through direct and indirect channels. The IMFC calls for a speedy resolution through diplomatic channels, including “political dialogue, negotiations, mediation and other peaceful means”, and for greater international cooperation and strengthened multilateralism to prevent fragmentation and safeguard global economic integration.

The IMFC expresses its deep appreciation to Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson for her leadership as IMFC Chair and welcomes Vice President Nadia Calviño as the new Chair.

The recovery of the global economy continues but has slowed down owing to new Covid-19 variants and is now facing a major setback from the war against Ukraine and its ramifications, which will amplify existing challenges. The resulting surge in energy and food prices has added to inflationary pressures, while supply disruptions have further intensified, and financial markets and capital flows are exhibiting increased volatility. Against the background of unprecedented uncertainties, rising interest rates, and record high global debt, the spillovers through commodity markets, trade, and financial channels could exacerbate existing vulnerabilities. Potential risks of debt distress, together with refugee flows, increased food insecurity, and inequality could add to social pressures. At the same time, climate change, together with other shared challenges—such as energy security, affordability, and sustainability—are becoming more pressing and require urgent attention.

In this context, strong domestic policies and international cooperation are needed more than ever to preserve the global economic recovery and safeguard macroeconomic stability, while battling the pandemic and, where necessary, mitigating the impact of energy and food price increases on the most vulnerable groups. We welcome the Managing Director’s call for urgent action on food security, in collaboration with multilateral and bilateral donors, to avert a food crisis by supporting the most vulnerable countries. We will continue to prioritize health spending and we will provide well-targeted support for vulnerable groups, including refugees and those affected by energy and food price spikes, while preserving long-term fiscal sustainability, including, where applicable, by bolstering medium-term fiscal frameworks. Central banks are closely monitoring the impact of price pressures on inflation expectations and will continue to appropriately calibrate the pace of monetary policy tightening in a data-dependent and clearly communicated manner, ensuring that inflation expectations remain well anchored, while being mindful to safeguard the recovery and limit negative cross-country spillovers. We will also continue to monitor and, if necessary, tackle financial vulnerabilities and risks to financial stability, including through targeted macroprudential measures and, if needed, other complementary policies. We will intensify our joint efforts to boost equitable access to a comprehensive COVID-19 toolkit, including vaccines, tests, treatments, and enhanced in-country delivery in developing countries, and remove relevant supply and financing constraints to overcome the pandemic, including by boosting local production of vaccines. We will take action to provide financial assistance to countries in need, particularly those affected by the current circumstances, while supporting their efforts to address heightened debt challenges, and strengthening debt transparency practices by both debtors and creditors, public and private.

Against the backdrop of current uncertainties, we will intensify our efforts to achieve the goal of a more resilient, sustainable, and inclusive global economy, while remaining fully committed to fostering multilateral cooperation. We will strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response to future infectious diseases. We also reiterate our strong commitment to further accelerate climate action in line with the Paris Agreement, taking into account country specific factors, and look forward to strong ambition for COP27, including enhanced action on adaptation and resilience. We recognize that timely, smooth, and just transitions to net zero will be critical for efforts towards increasing energy security and global resilience to current instability and future shocks. We will utilize policy mixes based on all effective tools, ranging from fiscal, market, and regulatory actions, including efficient policy instruments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while protecting the most vulnerable groups. We will ensure that the digital transformation process plays a key role in making our economies more resilient and inclusive, being mindful of data protection, data sharing, and interoperability and portability. We will ensure that the design of legal and regulatory frameworks for crypto assets can better protect against financial stability and integrity risks, while fostering innovation. We reaffirm our commitments on exchange rates, excessive global imbalances, and governance, and our statement on the rules-based trading system, as made in April 2021.

We welcome the Managing Director’s Global Policy Agenda. In the context of current stress in the macroeconomic circumstances and outlook, we look forward to the IMF’s swift and vital real-time and granular support to members through its tailored cutting-edge policy advice, timely financial support, and targeted capacity development in close and effective collaboration with international partners.

We support the IMF’s increased surveillance focus on risk analysis and contingent policy advice; and its efforts to continue strengthening multilateral surveillance and analytical work on pressing policy issues, including on inflation and its drivers, policy mixes and international spillovers, financial, external, and corporate sector vulnerabilities, fiscal adjustment, scarring from the pandemic, and inequality. We welcome the IMF’s recently completed Review of the Institutional View on capital flows and look forward to continued collaboration with other international organizations on capital flow issues and continued work on the Integrated Policy Framework. We look forward to the IMF’s guidelines on strengthening the assessment of debt vulnerabilities and risks with the new debt sustainability framework for market-access countries and the work on the Multi-Pronged Approach. We look forward to the upcoming review of the IMF’s Framework for Enhanced Fund Engagement on Governance.

The IMF has an important role in providing continued financial support with adequate safeguards through its facilities to members experiencing balance of payments needs, including countries that are particularly affected by the current circumstances, such as those that are at high risk from energy price increases and food insecurity. We welcome the progress on voluntary channeling of SDRs and call for further contributions. In particular, we welcome the recent decision to establish the Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST). The Trust aims to help low-income and eligible small states and middle-income countries address longer-term structural challenges that pose macroeconomic risks, including climate change and pandemics. We reaffirm our support for broad-based voluntary contributions in SDR or freely usable currencies, particularly from members with strong external positions according to their domestic processes, to enable the RST’s full operationalization later this year, while furthering IMF collaboration with the World Bank and other relevant multilateral institutions. We welcome our members’ commitment to treat the RST as a preferred creditor, consistent with all IMF lending. We also urge members, including through broader voluntary participation, to cover the remaining resources to meet the total amount being sought for loans and subsidies for the PRGT, helping ensure its self-sustainability, as well as to replenish the Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust to provide debt service relief in the event of further shocks. We welcome the establishment of the IMF’s Multi-Donor Administered Account to facilitate bilateral financial assistance to Ukraine and will continue to work closely, in coordination with international partners, to support Ukraine in meeting its external financing needs, both immediate and for the post-war reconstruction. We welcome the G20’s commitment to step up efforts to implement the Common Framework for debt treatments, which is also agreed by the Paris Club, in a timely, orderly, and coordinated manner, giving more certainty to debtor countries, jointly supported by the IMF and the World Bank. We encourage efforts to make progress in the cases of those countries that have requested a debt treatment under the Common Framework. More generally, we also support the IMF’s broad agenda on debt sustainability, transparency, and restructuring. We also highlight the IMF’s work to help address high and rising debt vulnerabilities.

We welcome the IMF stepping up its work as described—in line with its mandate and in continued effective collaboration with partners—in the new strategies on climate, on digital money and its implications for policies and the international monetary system, and on fragile and conflict-affected states, as well as the deepening of its macro-financial bilateral surveillance, mainstreaming of gender issues, and its enhanced engagement on policy issues affecting inequality. We reiterate the IMF’s important role in responding to members’ diverse needs for guidance on the macroeconomic and financial implications of climate change issues and on effective policy responses, including as a forum for dialogue.

We support the IMF’s efforts to further integrate its capacity development with its surveillance and lending activities, while remaining agile to support members in implementing crisis-related responses, addressing vulnerabilities, and strengthening institutional capacity. We welcome the Fund’s country-tailored approach to capacity development and support it in securing appropriate financing.

We reaffirm our commitment to a strong, quota-based, and adequately resourced IMF at the center of the global financial safety net. We remain committed to revisiting the adequacy of quotas and will continue the process of IMF governance reform under the 16^th General Review of Quotas, including a new quota formula as a guide, by December 15, 2023. We welcome the second progress report to the Board of Governors and will build on recent constructive discussions to make further progress by the time of our next meeting.

We support ongoing modernization projects in the IMF and call for further progress on diversity. We support increasing gender diversity in the Executive Board. We agree on the importance of strong institutional safeguards and look forward to the outcome and the next steps of the review by the Executive Board and management on Institutional Safeguards.

Our next meeting is expected to be held on October 13, 2022.

Chair’s Statement of the Forty-Sixth Meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)

October 14, 2022

Chaired by Ms. Nadia Calviño, First Vice President of Spain and Minister for Economy and Digitalization

The IMFC recalls that on March 2, the United Nations General Assembly by a majority of 141 countries adopted the resolution ES-11/1 “Aggression against Ukraine” that “deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in violation of Article 2 (4) of the Charter” and “demands that the Russian Federation immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine”. Thirty-five countries abstained from the vote; five countries voted against the resolution; some countries expressed no position.

The IMFC recognizes that since our last meeting in April, Russia’s war against Ukraine has continued with massive humanitarian consequences and detrimental repercussions for the global economy through direct and indirect channels. The IMFC acknowledges that on October 12, the United Nations General Assembly by a majority of 143 countries adopted the resolution ES-11/L.5 “Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the Charter of the United Nations” that expresses its strong support for “the de-escalation of the current situation and a peaceful resolution of the conflict through political dialogue, negotiation, mediation and other peaceful means”.

The IMFC reiterates its call for greater international cooperation and strengthened multilateralism to prevent fragmentation and safeguard global economic integration.

The global recovery is slowing amidst high uncertainties. Hit by multiple shocks, the global economy is facing significant challenges, and the outlook is more difficult than in April and subject to downside risks. More than two years of pandemic, followed by Russia’s war against Ukraine, are weighing heavily on economic activity with significant impact on livelihoods. Inflation is at multi-decade highs, debt is elevated, food and energy security risks are increasing, supply-chain and trade disruptions persist, and financial conditions are tightening, while capital flow and exchange rate volatility have increased. The global economy is subject to increased fragmentation risks. The steep rise in the cost of living is affecting everyone, with the most vulnerable hit the hardest. These developments come on top of intensifying inequality, debt vulnerabilities, and climate shocks. Rapid digitalization brings both opportunities and risks.

In this global context, appropriate domestic policies and intensified multilateral cooperation are essential to safeguard macroeconomic and global financial stability, shore up resilience, limit negative spillovers, and overcome the current food crisis. We will calibrate and coordinate our domestic policies, managing tradeoffs, and bolstering the effectiveness of the policy response, tailored to country-specific circumstances. Our priorities are to fight inflation and to protect the most vulnerable populations while safeguarding debt sustainability, growth, and macro-financial stability, and managing other vulnerabilities. Central banks are strongly committed to achieving price stability and ensuring that inflation expectations remain well anchored, in line with their respective mandates. Clear communication of policy and safeguarding central bank independence can help avoid exacerbating market volatility, limit negative cross-country spillovers, and maintain policy credibility. Fiscal policy will prioritize the protection of vulnerable groups from the burden of rising cost of living through temporary and targeted support while ensuring fiscal sustainability. We will ensure coherence of the overall monetary and fiscal stances, with due consideration to the complementary role of structural policies in easing trade-offs. As we continue to monitor financial vulnerabilities and risks to financial stability, our macroprudential policies need to guard against rising systemic risks as financial conditions tighten, while being mindful of potential negative procyclical effects. Recognizing that many currencies have moved significantly this year with increased volatility, we reaffirm our commitments on exchange rates, as made in April 2021. We will also advance our structural reform agenda to address supply constraints, bolster female labor force participation, and increase growth potential, thus easing growth-inflation tradeoffs.

Urgent multilateral action is needed to address shared challenges. We will further step up efforts to overcome the food crisis in coordination with international organizations and development partners and, in this context, will focus on supporting affected countries in protecting vulnerable populations from the impact of food price shocks and on lifting of export restrictions on food and fertilizers. We will continue to support vulnerable countries as they address their pressing financing needs and debt vulnerabilities. We reiterate our strong resolve to further accelerate climate action in line with the Paris Agreement and UNFCCC commitments, taking into account country-specific factors. We look forward to strong ambition for COP27, including enhanced action on adaptation and resilience. We recognize that timely, smooth, and just transitions to net zero will be critical for efforts toward increasing energy security and global resilience to current instability and future shocks. We will utilize policy mixes based on all effective tools, ranging from fiscal, market, and regulatory actions, including efficient policy instruments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while protecting the most vulnerable groups. We note the need to gradually adapt energy markets and promote the role of renewables as part of the energy mix, as well as strengthening the social support to green and sustainable transitions. We will ensure that the digital transformation process plays a key role in making our economies more resilient and inclusive, being mindful of data protection, data sharing and interoperability and portability. We will also work together to develop and implement effective legal and regulatory frameworks for the crypto-assets ecosystem, including the so-called stablecoins, and work to enhance cross-border payments. We reiterate our commitment on excessive global imbalances, and governance, and our statement on the rules-based trading system, as made in April 2021.

We welcome the Managing Director’s Global Policy Agenda.

We support the IMF’s surveillance focus on timely and granular policy advice to respond to ongoing shocks and uncertainty and strengthen resilience. We welcome the IMF’s policy advice and analytical work on inflation, monetary-fiscal policy interactions, policy spillovers, and risks related to global food insecurity, trade, and safety nets. We support the IMF’s emphasis on inclusive policies. We welcome the IMF’s progress on operationalizing the Integrated Policy Framework, guiding members on the appropriate use of multiple policy tools to deal with shocks and risks taking into account country-specific circumstances and in line with the Institutional View. We look forward to the upcoming reviews of the Role of Trade in the Work of the Fund and of the implementation of the 2018 Framework for Enhanced Fund Engagement on Governance.

We reiterate the IMF’s critical role in providing financial support, including on a precautionary basis, with adequate safeguards to help members deal with balance of payments problems. We welcome the operationalization of the Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST) and look forward to the first RST-supported programs later this year. We welcome the progress toward a cooperation framework with the World Health Organization and the World Bank to enable support of pandemic preparedness efforts through the RST. We reaffirm our support for broad-based voluntary contributions to the RST, including through voluntary channeling of SDRs and timely conversion of the pledges into agreements. To maximize members’ benefit from the RST, we look forward to it playing a catalytic role through strengthened collaboration with the World Bank and other relevant multilateral institutions and attracting additional finance for climate and pandemic preparedness from the official and private sector. We welcome the new temporary food-shock window under the IMF’s emergency financing instruments, which will help enhance support to members facing urgent balance of payments needs related to the global food shock. We also welcome the new Staff Monitored Program with Executive Board Involvement. Looking forward, the IMF needs to continue to review and, if necessary, adapt its instruments and policies to best serve the membership in the context of global shocks. We will undertake all necessary efforts to close the remaining funding gap in the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust for subsidies and loans, including through voluntary SDR channeling. We look forward to the forthcoming review of the Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust, where funding needs will be evaluated. We welcome the voluntary contributions made for the IMF’s multi-donor administered account to facilitate bilateral financial assistance to Ukraine.

We support the IMF’s efforts to work with partners to address current and future debt challenges. We welcome the recent progress made on Zambia’s debt restructuring. Building on this momentum, we support the IMF’s work with the World Bank to help strengthen and accelerate the implementation of the G20’s Common Framework (CF) for debt treatments on a case-by-case basis, which is also agreed by the Paris Club, in a timely, orderly, and coordinated manner. We encourage the timely, orderly, and coordinated conclusion of the debt treatments for Chad and Zambia and progress on Ethiopia under an IMF-supported program. Given the rise of vulnerabilities in middle-income countries, we support efforts to explore, with all stakeholders, ways to promote stronger creditor coordination for debt restructuring where the CF is not applicable and to develop further complementary avenues to foster greater global consensus on debt challenges worldwide and appropriate ways to address them. We look forward to the IMF’s work on collateralized financing practices, strengthening contractual provisions to support debt restructurings, improving debt data quality and transparency, roll-out of the new Sovereign Risk and Debt Sustainability Framework, and implementation of the revised sovereign-arrears policies.

We welcome the IMF’s stepped-up efforts—in line with its mandate and in continued effective collaboration with partners—to deepen its macro-financial surveillance and implement its strategies for helping members tackle climate change, reap the opportunities and mitigate the risks related to digitalization, and reduce income and gender inequality, when deemed macro-critical. We also welcome the IMF’s efforts to provide customized support to fragile and conflict-affected states in addressing their unique needs, including macroeconomic issues arising from security and humanitarian challenges. We reiterate the IMF’s important role in responding to members’ diverse needs for guidance on the macroeconomic and financial implications of climate change issues and on effective policy responses, including through dialogue. We look forward to the IMF’s analytical work on the implications of digital money for global financial stability and the International Monetary System, on policy considerations for crypto assets, and on improving cross-border payment arrangements. We welcome the recent strategy integrating macro-critical aspects of gender into the IMF’s core activities exploring synergies with other Fund workstreams. We support the IMF’s work to enhance engagement on social spending.

We support the IMF’s efforts to further integrate country-tailored capacity development (CD) with surveillance and lending activities and secure appropriate financing for CD. We look forward to the review of the strategic framework for CD, following the Independent Evaluation Office’s recommendations.

We reaffirm our commitment to a strong, quota-based, and adequately resourced IMF at the center of the global financial safety net. We remain committed to revisiting the adequacy of quotas and will continue the process of IMF governance reform under the 16 ^th General Review of Quotas, including a new quota formula as a guide, by December 15, 2023. We welcome the constructive engagement of all members. We also welcome the third progress report to the Board of Governors and look forward to accelerated progress by the time of the next meeting.

We welcome the IMF’s continued efforts to attract talent to support existing and new priority areas and urge it to step up improvements in staff diversity and inclusion, responding to the specific challenges identified in the FY 2020 - FY 2021 Diversity and Inclusion Report. We also stress the importance of increasing gender diversity in the Executive Board. We support the IMF’s efforts to strengthen its Enterprise Risk Management framework to underpin responsible risk taking in fulfilling its mandate. We look forward to the implementation of the recommendations of the Institutional Safeguards Review.

Our next meeting is expected to be held on April 14, 2023.

Section C: Canada’s engagement in European Bank for Reconstruction and Development operations

Reporting requirements

Created in 1991, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) fosters the transition toward democratic, market-oriented economies and promotes private and entrepreneurial initiatives in Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean region. The EBRD recognizes that successful market economies should be inclusive as well as competitive, environmentally friendly, integrated, resilient and well governed. In 2022, the EBRD made €13.1 billion in investments – their highest level of investment ever – supporting 431 projects across 37 economies. Canada has been a member of the EBRD since its creation and is the bank’s 8th largest shareholder.

The EBRD was the first international financial institution to approve a comprehensive package to respond to the war in Ukraine and support the resilience of Ukraine and other affected countries. The “Resilience Package,” announced in March 2022, enabled €1.7 billion in financing in calendar year 2022 (of which 50 per cent was enabled through donor guarantees and grants) to help the citizens, companies, and state-owned enterprises affected by the war in Ukraine. In October 2022, Canada signed a €36.5 million guarantee agreement to enable, together with others, a €300 million EBRD loan to Naftogaz, Ukraine’s state-owned gas company, helping to keep the heat and lights on in Ukraine during winters. By the end of 2023, EBRD’s total support in Ukraine is projected to reach €3 billion. EBRD’s support in Ukraine has been focused on energy security, municipal services and livelihoods for displaced persons, trade finance, and the provision of liquidity for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Act (EBRD Act) came into force in 1991 and provides the legal framework for Canada’s membership in the EBRD. As a founding member and the eighth-largest shareholder in the Bank, Canada actively contributes to the development of EBRD policies while providing oversight of the Bank’s financial activities. This is primarily achieved through Canada’s seats on the Board of Governors and Board of Directors.

As laid out in section 7 of the EBRD Act, the Minister of Finance is required to provide to Parliament an annual report of operations containing a general summary of all actions taken under the Act, including their sustainable development and human rights aspects. This section meets these reporting requirements.

For more information, refer to the text of the EBRD Act on Justice Canada’s website: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Agreement Act.

Governance and representation

Canada’s capital subscriptions and shareholding

As of December 31, 2022, the EBRD had 71 shareholders: 69 countries, as well as the European Union and the European Investment Bank. The EBRD is active in 37 economies in Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the southern and eastern Mediterranean region. At its 2022 Annual Meeting, Governors approved in principle a limited and incremental expansion of the Bank’s activities into sub-Saharan Africa and Iraq over the next several years, which will see a select number of countries in the region apply to become EBRD shareholders and countries of operations.

The EBRD’s share capital is provided by member countries that hold proportional voting rights. Decision-making power is primarily exercised by member countries through their representatives on the Board of Governors and the Board of Directors.

Canada is the eighth-largest shareholder of the EBRD, with its shares representing 3.4% or €1.02 billion of the institution’s capital. Of Canada’s total share, €213 million is paid-in capital and the remaining is callable capital^{Footnote 15}.

Information on the EBRD’s 2022 fiscal year (January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022) is provided in its Annual Review and Financial Report. Further information on the EBRD’s performance can be found in the Sustainability Report and Transition Report. The Bank releases considerable information on its various activities. Bank publications include information guides (such as the Guide to EBRD Financing), evaluation reports, special reports, country strategies, and assorted fact sheets. Information can be obtained on the Bank’s website.

Requests for EBRD information can be addressed to:

Attention: Access to Information FunctionEuropean Bank for Reconstruction and Development5 Bank Street, London

E14 4BG, United Kingdom

Or submitted online to accessinfo@ebrd.com, or through the Bank’s Information Request Form.

Canada at the Board of Governors

The highest authority in the EBRD is the Board of Governors. The Board meets annually and approves the EBRD’s Annual Review, net income allocation and financial statements, the independent auditor’s report, the election of the chair and vice-chair for the next Annual Meeting, as well as other items requiring governors’ approval. Governors provide a written statement at the EBRD annual meetings. Canada’s statement outlines its priorities at the Bank.

A Governor and an Alternate Governor represent each of the 71 shareholders. Canada’s Governor during the reporting period was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland. David Morrison, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, is Canada’s Alternate Governor.

To learn more about the governance of the Board of Governors, please visit the EBRD’s Board of Governors webpage.

Canada at the Executive Board

The Board of Directors is responsible for the general operations of the Bank. It comprises 23 members, with each representing either one member or a constituency of member countries. The Board helps to set the strategic and financial course for the Bank, in consultation with the Bank’s management. During the reporting period, Canada was represented on the EBRD Board of Directors by Sarah Fountain Smith. The Director for Canada also represents Morocco, Jordan and Tunisia at the EBRD Board of Directors.

To learn more about the governance of the Executive Board, please visit the EBRD’s website. The office of the Director for Canada, Morocco, Jordan, and Tunisia, can be reached by email at canadaoffice@ebrd.com.

Canada at board committees

The Board of Directors has established four committees to oversee Bank activities: the Board Steering Group, the Audit Committee, the Budget and Administrative Affairs Committee, and the Financial and Operations Policies Committee. This division of labour is consistent with good corporate governance practices and provides an appropriate system of checks, balances and incentives. In addition, the structure ensures a more effective discussion by the Board, once initiatives are ready for approval.

The Board Steering Group is responsible for the coordination of the committees’ work programs to avoid overlap and ensure timely completion. In addition to some administrative duties, the Group’s chair is the main liaison between the Board of Directors and management. In 2022, the Group was chaired by the Director for the Netherlands, China, Mongolia, North Macedonia, and Armenia (January to August) and the Director for the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovak Republic, Croatia, and Georgia (September to December).

The Audit Committee’s primary objective is to ensure that the financial information reported by the Bank is complete, accurate, relevant and timely. The Committee oversees the integrity of the Bank’s financial statements, and the compliance of its accounting and reporting policies with the requirements set out in the International Financial Reporting System. It also reviews the EBRD’s system of internal controls and its implementation, as well as the functions of the internal audit, evaluation, compliance and risk management teams. In 2022, the Committee was chaired by the Director for Belgium, Luxembourg, and Slovenia (January to August) and the Director for the European Investment Bank (September to December).

The Budget and Administrative Affairs Committee is responsible for ensuring that the Bank’s budgetary, staff and administrative resources are aligned with its strategic priorities. To this end, the Committee reviews the medium-term resource framework, annual budgets and the business plan. It also oversees the Bank’s human resources policies, the Shareholder Special Fund, and the uses of Donor funding. In 2022, the Committee was chaired by the Director for Poland, Bulgaria, and Albania (January to August) and the Director for Germany (September to December).

The Financial and Operations Policies Committee oversees the Bank’s financial and operational policies, including the annual borrowing plan and the liquidity policy prepared by the Treasury Department. The committee plays a key role in taking forward implementation of the Bank’s Strategic and Capital Framework; policy coherence and coordination; discussions on projects under the early warning system; and substantive preparations for the EBRD’s Annual Meeting. Since 2007, the Committee has also been charged with overseeing the net income allocation process. As well, it is responsible for the Bank’s Environmental and Social Policy and EBRD country and sector strategies. In 2022, the Committee was chaired by the Director for Canada, Morocco, Jordan, and Tunisia (January to August) and the Director for the United Kingdom (September to December).

Benefits of EBRD membership

Canada’s membership in the EBRD, and its active participation in the discussion of policy and operational issues, is an important means to help shape economic and social development in the EBRD’s countries of operation. Canada strongly supports the overriding objective of developing a strong private sector by mobilizing financing for projects with a high transition impact and by providing advice and technical assistance to businesses and governments. The Bank provides Canada with a vehicle to contribute to development in transition countries that are not currently part of Canada’s bilateral development assistance programs. This year, Canada has worked closely with the EBRD to respond to Russia’s war in Ukraine and provide critical financial and policy support as Ukraine navigates this crisis. As Ukraine’s largest institutional investor, EBRD will also have an important role to play in supporting Ukraine’s reconstruction, once conditions in the country allow.

Finally, Canada’s engagement helps to raise awareness among Canadian companies of opportunities presented by the EBRD. Canadian companies can seek financing for projects undertaken in the Bank’s countries of operations. The Bank often relies on the procurement of goods and services from the private sector to implement transition projects. The Executive Director’s office works diligently with Bank management to increase awareness amongst Canadian companies of the opportunities presented at EBRD, with a view to increasing the participation of Canadian companies. Canadian financial institutions also play an active role in managing EBRD global bond issuances. Furthermore, Canadians are well represented on EBRD staff. At the end of 2022, there were 31 Canadians on the staff of the EBRD, representing 0.83% of total positions.