Foreign Affairs Committee on May 30th, 2019

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Peterborough—Kawartha, ON]

I'll let my colleagues here name an example.

[Diane Jacovella, Deputy Minister, International Development, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development]

The office works very closely with the development side of the department. The feminist international assistance policy actually has adopted a human rights-based approach, everything we do now in humanitarian assistance, so we collaborate very closely.

One example is human rights defenders. We task all of our missions around the world to make sure they advance these issues. They look at how they can promote the protection and the rights of those defenders. We are—

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Durham, ON]

Specifically perhaps about the Rohingya or the Uighurs. Has that office been involved in any way in those very troubling circumstances with those groups?

[Diane Jacovella]

One other thing in our strategy for the Rohingya is to ensure that perpetrators are held accountable. As you know, it's very difficult to do. This office has been collaborating very closely with the UN to try to find a mechanism to record the incidents of violence that many of these peoples have experienced, doing it in a way that protects them. Sometimes it may take years for that information to get to prosecutors, but we're working very closely together to make sure this is done.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Durham, ON]

I appreciate that.

Minister, if there can be any follow-up, I would like some case examples from that department because the budget was tripled, but I see it doing virtually nothing compared to the work Dr. Bennett did.

Let me turn to the developing world. In the last two weeks it has been launching the garbage flotilla headed back to Canada. It appears in recent years that the developing world, as we've seen in Malaysia and the Philippines, is very upset about containers of garbage and recycling being sent to their countries from Canada.

Since they are development partners in some projects, what are we doing to alleviate those projects? It's never good when Canada has garbage flotillas headed to our shores from the developing world.

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Peterborough—Kawartha, ON]

We are invested heavily in ensuring that we protect the environment and address climate change all around the world. We have invested $2.65 billion to ensure that happens.

In the case of the Philippines, for example, we're working on clean water with indigenous women in the Philippines. These efforts are really important because, as you know, climate change knows no borders.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Durham, ON]

Are these high-profile things with the garbage blanking out the good work, or making people disregard the good work we're doing on development?

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Peterborough—Kawartha, ON]

No. We're taking accountability for others' mistakes and working to address them.

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Levitt]

Thank you.

Seeing the time, this will be the last question.

We are going to MP Sidhu, please.

[Jati Sidhu, Liberal, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Minister, thank you for being here this morning.

You mentioned a couple of times that the world needs more Canada. You touched on the issue of fundamental rights for women and girls, 70 new facilities created where they can get help, but the next thing is about the kids. No matter where they are born, they deserve the equal right to education.

I was wondering if you can you update the committee on what we have been doing around the world so kids can have a level playing field when it comes to education.

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Peterborough—Kawartha, ON]

For most, whether we've spoken with our Syrian neighbours when they were coming in or those in refugee camps or those who are displaced not in a refugee camp abroad, when you ask them what they need, more often than not they are worried, and rightly so, about their kids' education. That's certainly the case with our partners around the world.

I'm going to give you an example of how Canada's investments and leadership in providing education to boys and girls is making a difference and rallying supports. I think you have some numbers.

When we had the G7 meeting with world leaders, for the first time ever we had renowned feminists from around the world, including Canada, providing advice to world leaders. One of the asks they made was for education.

Canada invested about $400 million. The Prime Minister shared that. We saw the team members and the staff to the presidents and the prime ministers around the room start exchanging notes, and sharing numbers back and forth. By the time they were done that meeting, that $400 million had leveraged close to $4 billion in education for women and girls in conflict zones, the single largest investment of its kind ever.

That is important because the goal for most displaced people and refugees is that they can go home. There is no place like home. Everybody wants to go home, with the exception of a few. How are they to go back and rebuild what's been broken if they do not have the tools to do so? Education is one of those really important tools that ensures that what has been broken is pieced back together by the people who know the place best and are most invested in it.

[Jati Sidhu, Liberal, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Good to know. Thank you.

Next, you talked about sustainability and stability around the world. I am wondering what we are doing as a country to promote our shared interests and values to make sure going forward that our children and their children have a safe and fair place to live around the world.

Could you touch on that issue?

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Peterborough—Kawartha, ON]

I think one of the best parts of the job for MPs is being able to talk to young people, and visit them in schools and so on. There are a lot of schools working on sustainable development goals. Young people are particularly keen and aware that what happens at home is connected to what happens around the world. They're driving the conversation. They're driving the change.

I think it was in a room like this just a few days ago where a bunch of kids—not from my riding, but somebody else's—had come here. They were asking us to do more and to work better together to accelerate progress, to address what's happening around the world by achieving the sustainable development goals by 2030.

I'd say that young people care. Young people are aware. They're actively doing their part. With the sustainable development goal around climate change, for example, they are pouring into streets here at home and around the world and asking decision-makers to take seriously their future, not to leave them with instability and the disasters that could happen if we don't take action.

I'd say that young people care. They're inspiring the rest of us to step up and do more.

[Jati Sidhu, Liberal, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Thank you so much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Levitt]

I want to thank Minister Monsef for being here and answering questions from around the table today.

I want to thank all colleagues for their questions.

With that, why don't we suspend for a couple of minutes? Then we'll reconvene with departmental officials and go from there.

[Linda Duncan, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Chair, can we remind the minister that we'd appreciate that report, her report that was given to OECD.

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Peterborough—Kawartha, ON]

Yes.

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Levitt]

Sure, so noted.

With that, we shall suspend.

[The Chair, Liberal, Michael Levitt]

We are reconvening.

This morning the committee is continuing its examination. We have departmental officials here from Global Affairs Canada for the final hour of our consideration of the estimates.

We have a wide array of officials whom I would like to welcome to the committee. There's a large number of you. I'm wondering if each of you could maybe introduce yourself and tell us your role. Then we can open it up to questions.

[Sarah Taylor, Director General, North Asia and Oceania, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development]

Sure.

Good morning.

I'm Sarah Taylor, Director General for North Asia and Oceania.

[Arun Thangaraj, Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Planning, Finance and Information Technology, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development]

I am Arun Thangaraj, Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer for Global Affairs.

[Mark Gwozdecky, Assistant Deputy Minister, International Security and Political Affairs, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development]

I'm Mark Gwozdecky, Assistant Deputy Minister, International Security and Political Affairs.

[Heather Jeffrey, Assistant Deputy Minister, Consular, Security and Emergency Management, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development]

I am Heather Jeffrey, Assistant Deputy Minister for Consular, Security and Emergency Management.

[Troy Lulashnyk, Director General, Maghreb, Egypt, Israel and West Bank and Gaza, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development]

I am Troy Lulashnyk, Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Europe, Middle East and North Africa.

[Cheryl Urban, Director General, South America and Inter-American Affairs, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development]

I'm Cheryl Urban. I'm the Director General responsible for South America and Inter-American Affairs.