Foreign Affairs Committee on Sept. 28th, 2017

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

As long as we know that the money is working as we want it to around the world. Will the committee know the results? That's my concern.

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

Yes, absolutely. They're working on the framework. We will stay in touch. Obviously, this framework and the results we are looking for will be directly linked with the SDG targets and indicators of results. We don't want to duplicate the work.

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

Thank you so much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bob Nault]

Thank you, Mr. Sidhu.

My colleague was asking about how you'll report to Parliament. I suspect that there will be an annual reporting mechanism through the Export Development agency as a subsidiary or something of that nature, so that Parliament will be informed not only about the dollars that are spent, but about the direction and strategy. Would that be correct?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

It will be exactly the same process as EDC right now, but with a specific report on DFI. I would always be open to coming back to talk to you about the progress if that is not enough.

Does the EDC report concern only figures or is there also a report on activities and orientation?

[Diane Jacovella]

There will be an annex specifically on the DFI.

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

The report will also include data on results and orientation.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bob Nault]

Thank you, Madam Minister.

Madam Vandenbeld, please, for her first questions as a new member of our committee.

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Thank you.

Welcome, Minister.

I would like to begin by congratulating you and the government on Canada's new Feminist International Assistance Policy, as it will make a difference not only for women and girls, but also in terms of the effectiveness of the assistance provided in general.

In that regard, I would like to ask you how Canada's Development Finance Institution will help the country reach its sustainable development objectives, especially SDG5 regarding gender equality.

Women's financial inclusion is a key element for ensuring equality. According to the World Bank, in developing countries, women are 20% less likely than men to even have a bank account. However, in those countries, between 30% and 37% of small businesses are owned by women.

How will the new DFI ensure that women will benefit equally from private investments? How will the financial inclusion of all vulnerable and marginalized groups, including women, be part of the DFI's mandate?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

Thank you for your question, and also for asking it in French.

Canada's Feminist International Assistance Policy must absolutely be reflected in our DFI. That is imperative.

For starters, we will ensure that our governance has the required competencies in terms of gender equality. EDC has its board of directors, and the DFI will have one, as well.

There will also be an advisory committee that will provide the board of directors with advice. Currently, we are making sure that those people have all the competencies with regard to gender equality and climate change. As for our key priorities, we are making sure we have the necessary competencies in governance.

DFI staff will be provided with the training they need to have appropriate responses and to be able to support businesses, so that their projects would have a real impact on gender equality on the ground.

There are areas of activity we want to get involved in. The policy states that women must be consulted locally. Private businesses can easily do that, and we will strongly encourage it. Consultations are being held to ensure that projects meet local needs. With our projects, we are doing more than consulting women; we are promoting their economic empowerment.

This must become second nature in all areas of activity, and that is highly likely and even desirable. The opportunity to engage women is a way to ensure success for businesses. I am often told so, especially in developing countries.

When it comes to entrepreneurship or the reliability of employees we hire, women are more likely to be punctual in their training, among other activities. It is very beneficial for private businesses to get women involved locally.

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Thank you very much.

In some countries, women cannot become owners, take out loans or register a business without their husband's permission.

Will the new DFI include not only financial education, but also women's economic rights?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

It is not easy to know whether the DFI will have an impact on that. The DFI is a complement to all our programming and policy.

What you mentioned is certainly among the priorities of the feminist policy. The governance component relates particularly to that. We want to ensure that the technical assistance we will provide to the countries will help guide them locally to develop policies that take into account people and needs.

First and foremost, this is simply about existing and having an identity. Subsequent events—such as obtaining the right to own property, the right to vote or the right to have a business—arise from that. Those are issues of concern to us, and they are priorities in the feminist policy.

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

We know that this is going to include in the documents technical assistance, the expertise that we can provide to countries in order to increase development as well as the private sector investment. Will we be providing things such as financial literacy for women and other marginalized groups, things that are barriers to their being able to start businesses and enter the economy?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

We will be able to do those types of activities mostly through our development programs. The technical assistance projects that will support the DFI's entrepreneurship projects will go through the department. Those projects will be directly related to technical assistance in order to support a company that wants to do business in Senegal or wherever. It's more about technical assistance.

When we say that we want to increase women's skills in finance, we are thinking more about creating a bilateral project, since that is very much in line with our priorities.

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Do I have more time?

[The Chair, Liberal, Bob Nault]

No, not really.

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

Développement international Desjardins actually already has similar projects under way.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bob Nault]

Thank you, Ms. Vandenbeld.

We'll go to Mr. Genuis, please.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Thank you for being here, Minister. I'm sorry to have come in a few minutes late. We had a bit of a room mix-up on my end.

Maybe you anticipated this question from me. I want to ask you just a bit about Canada's aid to Burma. We've had a lot of discussion recently about the crisis affecting the Rohingya. I know that there have been some initiatives around assistance to Rohingya refugees in other countries, but I'd like to hear about Canada's aid within Burma itself.

I was looking over some background on this. I'm curious to hear if you have a bit more information on the support to decentralized governance in Burma, which was provided through the Forum of Federations. What exactly is the mechanism for that and how is that going in light of the problems?

I have a secondary question on that. There was an announcement—I think a year and a half ago—of around $40 million for democratic development. I'm wondering if that goes through your department or if that goes directly through Foreign Affairs. I'm curious to hear some more information, but maybe you're not the right person to ask. If you do know about that, what's happening with that as well?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

In terms of humanitarian aid, our contributions to Myanmar since the beginning of the year have amounted to $9.18 million, of which $3.55 million has been provided since the beginning of the crisis, August 25.

If I have understood correctly, you are referring to the peace and democracy project, which has been going for awhile. As I mentioned on Tuesday evening in the House, the money is not given directly to the government and is not at risk of being diverted. I want to reassure you that the money is given to trustworthy partners. To be honest, I am not familiar with all the details on other projects, as I prepared myself more to talk about the DFI.

Peace and security issues are the responsibility of Minister Freeland. However, I would be happy to obtain more details on that, as these are issues our two offices are working on. We will give you more details on the Myanmar project.

Mr. Genuis, your question had a second part, but I have forgotten it, and I apologize for that.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

I understand that funding was delivered through the Forum of Federations for support for decentralized governance in Burma. I understand that these recent proposals are not all for government-to-government aid but work through partners. Of course, there are still a lot of challenges in delivering aid to Burma in the current situation in any event and even in getting humanitarian access to Rakhine.

Is a review going on in terms of recognizing the challenge of delivering this aid and trying to do it in a different way, or are you satisfied that the current structures are still working to get aid there, including to those who are most vulnerable?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

I'm satisfied with the way we work within the context we have. I am definitely not satisfied with the actors we have in the field, that's for sure—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Right.

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

—so this is why we have condemned very strongly what's happening. We are advocating for free access for humanitarian workers and humanitarian assistance, that's for sure. We're working with partners who have access. Right now in Myanmar, there is only the international Red Cross that can somehow get access, but it's very limited access, as we all know, so I'm definitely not happy with this.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Thank you.

In a bit of a different vein, earlier there was some discussion about getting help to the most vulnerable around the world. I read a very eye-opening book over the summer about development assistance. It was making the argument that one of the biggest challenges affecting the poor around the world is basic access to justice. It's something that's often outside our frame of reference, but for many poor people around the world, one of the biggest challenges they face is that their land can be taken away from them and people can be forced into bonded labour, and they don't have an effective ability to take that to a sympathetic police force. Maybe it's an issue of lack of prosecutors or a lack of police training.

I've become convinced through that and some subsequent reading I've done that this is a fundamental problem. If you want people to start businesses and to gain skills to be able to move forward, they must have some degree of certainty that when they make investments in themselves and their property, they're actually going to be able to hang onto those investments and not have them taken away.

I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on that and on what the Government of Canada is doing, if anything, around these issues of access to justice for the poor in the developing world.