Foreign Affairs Committee on Feb. 2nd, 2021

[Tineka Levy]

Yes, I think you're certainly right. Education is a huge vehicle for peace-building. Although there are challenges, undoubtedly, with the pandemic, with school closures' preventing children from accessing physical classrooms, there are, in fact, a lot of low-cost and low-tech modalities that can be launched and that all of our agencies have been using with great success and with efficacy.

There are simple things like paper-based methodologies, take-home learning packets, and things like that in which gender transformative messages, messages around peace-building, and messages around safety and hygiene to protect children and their families in the context of the pandemic can be embedded. These types of things are really quite necessary. It does take resourcing to be able to implement these things at scale as well, and to train teachers in the use of these modalities.

I hope that answers your question.

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

Thank you. It did.

I have 15 seconds. Does anyone else want to wade in?

[Annabelle Bodmer-Roy]

I'll weigh in, just to say quickly that when we're looking at conflict context and the displacement that often results from conflict, it's important, when we're designing education programs, that we're looking at the displaced populations as well as the host communities. Whether that's in the context of internal displacement and host communities within a country, or cross-border and host communities for refugees, we're really trying to ensure that there isn't a “one versus the other” approach and that we're not, for example, providing education for one group at the expense of another group, and likewise for other types of interventions such as immunization or nutrition or protection.

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

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sven Spengemann]

We'll now go to the next speaker, Ms. Sahota.

Please go ahead for five minutes.

[Ruby Sahota, Liberal, Brampton North, ON]

Thank you.

My questions are for UNICEF and Ms. Bodmer-Roy.

You've mentioned the importance of vaccine readiness as a part of Canada's global response to ending COVID-19. You've talked about why it's needed, where it's needed, and when it's needed, all of that, but can you speak to how vaccine readiness would be in line with the government's feminist international assistance policy?

[Annabelle Bodmer-Roy]

Many people have said that women and girls are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, and I know later on we'll hear from other colleagues further on some of those issues.

We know that gender equality is also one of the inequalities that have been exacerbated in this pandemic. For example, the health of women is adversely impacted through reallocation of resources and priorities including sexual reproduction health services and maternal health services.

We know that unpaid care work has increased. We know, for example, particularly with children out of school—and I can attest to this as a working mother here in Canada—that there have been challenges, and those challenges are reflected around the world.

But at the same time, in many contexts, including conflict in crisis contexts, the responsibility for ensuring that children get vaccinated falls on women, on mothers, on grandmothers, on aunts, or on older sisters sometimes, and so as Canada looks to support vaccine readiness, there must be a specific effort to empower and equip women really to look at vaccine misinformation.

So really ensuring that women, whether it's mothers or grandmothers or women's associations at community levels, have the information to really fight vaccine misinformation at the community level, and ensuring that, when we are looking at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, local women's organizations and networks, again at that community level, are consulted to ensure that COVID-19 vaccines reach the most vulnerable are critical parts of readiness.

The other element I would highlight is that it's estimated that 70% of front-line health workers in these contexts are women, and so this means that many women will be taking responsibility for safely distributing and administering COVID-19 vaccines. These health workers are putting themselves on the front line of COVID-19 distribution and they must be protected through adequate training on, for example, vaccine storage, cold chains, distribution and administration, and also ensure that they're equipped with PPE.

They also need to be provided priority access to COVID-19 vaccination themselves so that as they're protecting other people's right to health, their own health is protected.

[Ruby Sahota, Liberal, Brampton North, ON]

I was also wondering if you can follow up on your six-point plan and expand on that plan for children.

[Annabelle Bodmer-Roy]

Thank you.

I mentioned earlier in response to Mr. Bergeron the focus on water and sanitation. Maybe I'll spend some time focusing on the other five areas of the six-point plan.

I'd like to highlight that this is a set of practical and concrete actions to really reunite the world around a common cause, and that is the realization of the SDGs and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Of the six priorities, I mentioned water and sanitation, but there are other ones that have been highlighted here today. There is the priority on education to ensure that all children learn, and that includes provision of targeted education support for children in conflict and crisis including displaced children, as well as girls and children with disabilities.

Another priority is to guarantee equitable access to health and nutrition services, including making sure that vaccines are affordable and available to every child. And I would really highlight the importance of ensuring we don't forget about routine vaccinations. We are very concerned that measles, polio, diphtheria and other deadly diseases are really increasing now in conflict-affected countries in particular like Yemen, as my colleague highlighted. That's another priority.

We're also concerned about the mental health of children and young people, which is the third area. And we're concerned about bringing an end to abuse and gender-based violence, recognizing, too, that gender-based violence has severe mental health impacts. That's our third area, mental health and gender-based violence.

Water and sanitation is the fourth.

There's also a concern around increases in child poverty, and really there we need to focus on inclusive recovery for all, including through an increase to overseas aid commitment and social protection mechanisms like cash transfers to allow children access to education, nutrition services and immunizations.

Finally, and this is really one of the most relevant to this segment of the study, we need to redouble efforts to protect and support children and their families living through conflict, disaster and displacement.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sven Spengemann]

Thank you.

Mr. Bergeron, go ahead for two and a half minutes.

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I will come back to the education issue.

UNESCO estimates that the vast majority of schools were closed on average for 14 weeks last year. Those mandatory closures affected 90% of students. Some are still affected by those closures.

That lack of schooling, as I was saying, has an impact even in developed countries. The drop-out rate is likely to increase because students are losing interest, despite the available technology.

What may be that situation's impact in developing countries, especially in conflict zones?

Answers to this question were already being provided, so I invite the witnesses to continue.

[Taryn Russell]

I can jump in.

As you mentioned, there's been a huge number of children who have been out of school, over a billion. There remain hundreds of millions of children who are in and out of school, and that number keeps changing. I would say it's because of the pandemic, but also in conflict situations we have to think if there are other reasons, too. Violence against schools has been a huge issue in the past year. We've seen instances of schools under attack in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. In Afghanistan right now, schools are closed because of the winter, so that compounds the issue because many families rely on schools to keep their children warm during the day, and they are struggling there. It's COVID compounded with conflict, compounded with natural disasters and other issues that are really forcing this learning crisis.

As I mentioned, I think what's going to need to happen, especially for these vulnerable groups, and we know who they are—they're girls, children with disabilities who were out of school at alarmingly high rates before the pandemic, refugees and internally displaced children—is they need really targeted supports because it's going to be harder than ever to get them back in school after the pandemic because many of them have already fallen victim to harmful practices. That can be anything from child marriage, which I spoke about at length, but it can also include child labour, trafficking, families that are too poor and their children go back to work. There are many things like that.

I think it's going to require a real concerted effort in talking to communities about what they need to support their vulnerable groups in terms of getting them back in school once it's safe to do so.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sven Spengemann]

Thank you very much, Mr. Bergeron. You're at exactly two and a half minutes, so your time is up.

Our final questioner will be Ms. McPherson, also for two and a half minutes, please.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you again, Mr. Chair.

I would like to ask a question of the Save the Children Canada and World Vision Canada teams. We know how important and how vital the work that multilaterals do is. However, we also know that local CSOs, Canadian CSOs, of all sizes, both large and small and medium organizations, often have a closer relationship with the community, are often more nimble and able to turn their programming much more appropriately.

I wonder if both organizations could speak very briefly about whether or not they feel Canada should be directing more aid dollars towards the Canada CSO community and the local CSO community?

Perhaps I could start with Ms. Gladding.

[Lindsay Gladding]

I appreciate the question.

I think there is definitely room for Canada to increase its support to Canadian civil society, particularly to local organizations. We know that these players are at the front lines in providing services to communities and are influential in the communities.

We have done a significant amount of work with faith leaders and we know that the word of a faith leader carries a lot of weight. When we're talking about barriers to vaccine access or misinformation about COVID-19, the role of faith leaders and local actors in being able to combat that really can't be overestimated. Canada has an opportunity to invest in that front line and to do so with Canadian partners.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you.

Ms. Russell.

[Taryn Russell]

I would just add that Canada should invest where it's going to have the most impact and where it's proven. Multilaterals can have a really fantastic impact when it comes to delivering on scale. For example, we see Gavi with vaccines and the Global Fund and the great work they're doing around HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria. What we don't want to see are funds not flowing through smaller or medium-sized organizations because there are barriers to doing so, not because it's an issue around impact.

I think what we want to ensure is that there are mechanisms that get set up and make it easier for Global Affairs to make decisions in terms of where the funds are going to flow, based on who is going to benefit the most from that, in many of the ways that Lindsay just reiterated around this, closeness with local leaders and with smaller civil society organizations in-country, for all of those reasons.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sven Spengemann]

That takes us to the end of our scheduled time with panel one. On our collective behalf, I'd like to thank our panellists for their testimony, expertise and, most importantly, for their service.

We will suspend briefly to allow our second panel to come onboard and then resume.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sven Spengemann]

Welcome back, colleagues.

I'd like to welcome our witnesses for our second panel.

For the benefit of those who have just joined us, I would encourage all participants to mute their microphones when they're not speaking. Direct your comments through the chair, please.

I will signal to you with this piece of paper when you have 30 seconds left. Interpretation services are available; you must click on the globe icon at the bottom of your screen.

I'd like to welcome Tanjina Mirza, chief programs officer, with Plan International Canada; Annalisa Brusati, senior technical adviser for child protection, with the International Rescue Committee; Susan McIsaac, president and chief executive officer, and Elias Ayoub, global director, country operations, with Right to Play International.

Ms. Mirza, welcome back to the committee. We will have you start off with introductory remarks of five minutes, please.

[Dr. Tanjina Mirza, Chief Programs Officer, Plan International Canada Inc.]

Thank you so much for giving us this opportunity to speak with you again.

COVID-19 is a child rights issue and the challenge is staggering. The situation is getting worse, so it's wonderful to talk about all of these issues.

As you heard in the previous panel, Plan International is a leading [Technical Difficulty—Editor] with other leading [Technical Difficulty—Editor] child rights organization. We're united in working together to address this crisis. As I mentioned last November, Plan International is one of the largest child rights organizations in international development striving to end gender inequality and promote child rights. We work in a context heavily burdened by crisis and conflict.

Today I'm going to focus on what we have learned that has increased the vulnerabilities of children, especially girls, over the last 10 months during COVID-19. I would also like to give some points on what we are doing right now to respond to this crisis.

First of all, let me provide you with what we have learned in the last 10 months, especially for children who are most vulnerable—those who are girls, especially—in the conflict and displacement setting with regard to their health, education, food security and income poverty.

Over the last 10 months, we are seeing several points very closely.

Number one is the school closures and safely returning children to school, especially the girls. This is vital in protecting their immediate and long-term health and well-being and their education opportunities. The education window is a small window. If we lose that, it's a very significant loss for the children's future as well as their current lives. Seventy-five million children, predominantly girls, are out of school in 35 countries right now.

The second point is that violence against children and women has surged. It requires strategies for improving reporting, raising awareness, psychological care and victim services. Violence against children is impacting all aspects of their survival [Technical Difficulty—Editor], physical and mental health, and of course [Technical Difficulty—Editor] . By 2030, it is estimated that 13 million more girls will be entering into early child and forced marriage.

The third point is that girls and women are suffering economic loss in income and social protection during this pandemic, making it even more crucial to promote initiatives and policies that enable girls to remain in school or in training, so that they are ready for future income-generation activities.

Girls are also experiencing greater barriers to essential sexual and reproductive health services. As the health systems are grappling with providing COVID-19 services, this service of sexual and reproductive health is not being prioritized. It needs urgent attention.

Another area that we are seeing is food insecurity. There are growing risks of famine in many parts of the world. It's directly a result of the pandemic. As we know, COVID is not impacting the children directly, but these are the impacts that they're facing because of the COVID pandemic globally.

Last, but not the least, is the need to invest in health systems globally, especially at the primary health care level. More than 80% of the world's refugees are hosted in low- and middle-income countries, where health systems are not equipped even in day-to-day work. Now with COVID and disease outbreaks, it's become a huge concern.

How are we responding? Plan International Canada has adapted all its programs to adjust to the COVID-19 reality. We are leaders in our approach to integrating gender equality in all aspects, such as health, education, economic empowerment, impacts of climate change, food security, water and sanitation—all focusing on children, especially girls.

We are investing in a big way in gender-responsive health system strengthening, so that not only can they respond to COVID-19 now, but they're resilient for future pandemics. Our gender-responsive approach includes prevention and protection measures, continuity of essential services and access to education on gender-based violence, so that they can prevent child marriage.

We are providing life-saving food assistance to the food insecure population.

Last but not least, we are making sure our education programs are effective, even during the COVID-19 closure. We look forward to the launch of the “together for learning” campaign next week for displaced children.

In conclusion, moving past this pandemic requires unprecedented collaboration and solidarity among all organizations and countries, the government and the NGO sector. We are encouraged by Canadians' international response to the pandemic and consistent commitment to increasing Canada's official development assistance. At Plan International Canada, we will continue to support the urgent needs of girls and children across all the crisis-affected countries.

Thank you so much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sven Spengemann]

Ms. Mirza, thank you very much for your opening remarks. We will now turn to Ms. Brusati.

The floor is yours for five minutes, please.

[Annalisa Brusati, Senior Technical Advisor for Child Protection, International Rescue Committee]

Thank you to the House of Commons for inviting the International Rescue Committee to testify today and for convening this meeting.

We are proud to join the other five organizations testifying, and call attention to the need for a comprehensive agenda for children, particularly those living in humanitarian contexts. We all know that this moment, as we collectively live through an unprecedented global pandemic, is having particular and troubling impacts on children. We have seen the impacts first-hand on our children. We have had to home-school while being concerned about our own livelihoods. We have worried about children we know getting sick or experiencing anxiety. We worry about what effect this time will have on their futures.

In the 40 countries where the IRC works, COVID-19 did not create these types of challenges. It only deepened them. Children living in conflicts and crisis have always dealt with school closures and the burden, stress and trauma of living in uncertainty. Children who have been displaced do not even have the comfort of a home. COVID-19 and the containment measures have layered risk upon risk for these children: learning loss, poor nutrition, school dropout, extreme poverty, social isolation, mental health consequences and drastic increases in the risk of violence within and outside their homes. All of this is happening while it is more difficult for organizations like the IRC to deliver services or identify children who need our assistance.

Child protection professionals who rely on educators and communities to recognize signs of violence against children are finding that traditional entry points to services and support are disrupted, making it harder to identify children in need and reach them with life-saving services.

Even as schools reopen, UNESCO warns that 24 million children and youth may not return to the classroom. These losses are personal—because each child deserves an opportunity for a future—as well as collective. The World Bank estimates that learning losses due to COVID could add up to $10 trillion U.S.

Girls, already up to 90% more likely not to attend school than their male counterparts in conflict settings, are at particular risk not to return, due to persistent gender inequality.

Children of all ages face particular risks. The early years are vital for brain development and setting children on a path to success in primary schools. They are foundational to productivity and well-being. Adolescence is another critical stage for brain development as children prepare for adulthood, yet in South Sudan, adolescent girls are three times more likely to die in childbirth than to complete their education.

Despite all this knowledge, there is limited actual commitment to prioritize and fund protective services. Child protection services made up only 1.4% of total funding received in 19 humanitarian responses in 2019. The Moving Minds Alliance found that early child development funding in crisis-affected countries represented only 2% of the share of humanitarian aid in 2018. This was before COVID increased competing priorities.

The University of Virginia and Sesame Workshop found that the most drastically under-represented areas of the COVID-19 global humanitarian response plan appeals included children's safety, security, responsive caregiving and early learning.

Canada, as a leader in the humanitarian sector, can and should strengthen the inclusion of holistic services for children and families in both standing humanitarian crises and crises deepened by the impact of COVID. This means translating what we know about the importance of interventions during childhood into policy priorities and increased investments. We echo our colleagues' calls to achieve the increase in ODA to which Canada has committed.

We recommend increasing the share of funding for child protection, so responses can prioritize protection from abuse and violence in and out of the home and support child development and well-being. These interventions must start in pregnancy and continue throughout the life cycle for children and youth.

We support and call on Canada to support the global learning together six-point plan of action and emphasize particularly mental health and well-being for children, caregivers and teachers; addressing how gender inequality impacts education; and particularly during COVID, lessening the digital divide and creating flexible alternatives that can allow children to safely interact with peers and learn.

Immediate and long-term opportunities exist for Canada to show leadership for children. These include adequately funding and maximizing the work of the refugee education campaign that is soon to be launched, and using G7 meetings and Global Partnership for Education replenishment as opportunities to demonstrate Canada's commitment to leadership to support children in humanitarian contexts.

The truth is that children cannot wait. Each day without increased action means more young girls married, more boys leaving school for work and isolated children facing violence alone. Each week without mental health services increases the stress on children and parents. Each month out of school increases the likelihood of lost economic opportunities in the future.

Once more, the IRC commends the House of Commons on holding this meeting and its commitment to strong, actionable solutions for children. We stand by ready to partner in and support the future direction.

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Sven Spengemann]

Thank you so much, Ms. Brusati, for your opening remarks.

The final set of opening remarks goes to Right to Play International.

Ms. McIsaac and Mr. Ayoub, you have five minutes, please.

[Susan McIsaac, President and Chief Executive Officer, Right To Play International]

Good afternoon and thank you, Chair.

At Right to Play International, our mission is to protect, educate and empower children to rise above adversity using the power of play. I'm hoping I will be joined shortly by my colleague Elias. Together we thank you for the invitation and for your attention to this very critical issue.

We have been encouraged by Canada's COVID-19 response and its recent commitment to increase ODA investments to support global recovery efforts. Our hope is that this study will offer some useful recommendations to ensure that children and youth can realize their right to be educated, protected, healthy and empowered.

COVID-19 is a health crisis, but the ripple effect on children's learning, mental health and safety cannot be ignored. In times of crisis, schools are often the first public service to be suspended and the last to be resumed. One year into the pandemic, nearly one billion learners are still out of school. That's in addition to the 75 million children and youth who were already out of school in crisis-affected countries. Numbers of this magnitude require an urgent and innovative response.

COVID-19 has exacerbated the already precarious circumstances faced by children who are living in conflict and crisis, putting them at greater risk of illness, child labour, violence and other forms of exploitation. When children and young people are out of school, their mental health, learning, and development also suffer. Without an education in a safe and nurturing learning environment, children and young people lose a sense of belonging and are denied the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and skills they need to reach their full potential. This is particularly true for girls.

Drawing on our 20 years of experience, Right to Play has been taking action to keep children healthy and safe, learning, and mentally strong. In 2020 Right to Play was actually able to expand our reach by adapting our programs to ensure that more children could continue their education at home and receive mental health and psychosocial support to deal with the stress of the pandemic as well as other overlapping crises.

In Mali, Right to Play is working to protect children as political unrest and poverty converge with the pandemic. Mali is one of the poorest countries in the world. Child labour is pervasive. One out of every three children in Mali works instead of going to school. With funding from Global Affairs Canada, our Jam Suka project has been working with families and communities to help children escape from child labour and go back to school. We've seen amazing progress in primary education completion rates, but this year's instability has threatened to undo much of that good work. Our team responded by supporting teachers to move to digital and radio platforms to ensure the continuity of education. We also helped to establish safe online support networks. This allowed children to keep in touch with friends and teachers as well as have a safe way to report abuse or seek mental health support, if needed.

Lebanon is another example of a country reeling from concurrent crises, including the destruction of homes and schools caused by the Beirut blast in August 2020. Even before that explosion, over 50% of Lebanese children and adolescents suffered from anxiety. In times of crisis, supporting children's mental health is the first step to recovery. Play-based methods are found to be highly effective in helping children cope with shock and trauma. Without safety and well-being, children are not able to learn, develop and thrive. Teachers must be equipped to provide this support for children by fostering supportive and playful learning environments.

Taken together, education and mental health support can promote well-being and resiliency, critical thinking, conflict resolution and community building. These skills are vital for all children and youth but particularly those living in settings disrupted by conflict or disaster. There's much more to say on this topic, but I want to leave you with three recommendations.

First, in times of crisis, children's learning and mental health must be prioritized. This means raising the bar on quality education by ensuring that the holistic skills and mental health and psychosocial supports are integrated into playful and conflict-sensitive curriculum and teaching practices.

Second, Canada must immediately increase our cross-sectoral support to prevent and respond to gender-based violence, strengthen child protection systems, and improve mental health and psychosocial support.

Finally, of course, none of the above interventions can be successful without adequate and timely funding. We encourage Canada to deliver on its commitment to increase the international assistance envelope. The world's most vulnerable children are counting on us.

I thank you.