Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Colleagues, it’s a great pleasure to join this committee.
I would also like to thank our guests.
I’ll start by asking you a few questions, Mr. Diendéré. First, thank you for joining us, seeing as it’s close to midnight there. My questions are related to those asked by my Bloc Québécois colleague on the issue of international assistance. I’d just like to add that, obviously, for the past few years, over and above international assistance, there have also been targeted efforts, for instance on the issue of climate change. Over the past five years, Canada has contributed $5 billion under the Paris Agreement and nearly half a billion dollars on the issue of nature.
In your opinion, Mr. Diendéré, with the massive withdrawal of the U.S. from international assistance, which we all find regrettable, are there opportunities for Canada to play a bigger role in some key sectors or could the American pullout result in increased insecurity, particularly on the African continent, which could obviously spill over African borders significantly?