Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to respond to the hon. member for Yukon on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The Government of Canada has provided almost $200,000 in funding for many non-governmental organizations under the umbrella of the people's summit.
This financial support is given through the departments of foreign affairs and international trade and CIDA, under whose aegis APEC is taking place.
In addition, Status of Women Canada has provided support for the domestic workers forum held on November 15 and 16, 1997, to allow participants to discuss the impact of economic restructuring on their lives and to facilitate their participation in the decision making process.
Status of Women Canada will continue to work with women's organizations to develop long term domestic follow-up action to the people's summit, to contribute to Canada's efforts to recognize gender as a cross-cutting issue in APEC.
We have already seen progress in three key areas of APEC's economic and technical co-operation agenda: small and medium enterprises, science and technology, and human resource development.
The Government of Canada is also working with APEC economies to incorporate more formally a women's agenda at future APEC meetings.
Our government's financial support is intended to strengthen the capacity of Canadian NGOs to contribute to the development of APEC policies and programs.