Bev Oda

[International Development, March 18th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, this government knows how to manage its finances. We are in fact increasing the budget for CIDA, for its international assistance. We have been doing that consistently. We will reach a level of international assistance never reached by any other government in the history of Canada.

[International Development, March 18th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite knows, at the upcoming summit the G8 leaders will discuss and chart the way forward to tackle child and maternal health.

As we have been saying all along, we are not closing the door on any options that will save the lives of mothers and children, including contraception. And as we have been saying all along, we are not opening the abortion debate.

[International Development, March 17th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, I have talked to my colleagues in all the G8 countries and they have applauded the initiative that we are putting forward. Every one of these enlightened countries, the donor countries which are making a difference in developing countries, knows that there are actions we can take that will actually make a significant difference in the number of mothers who are dying in childbirth and in their postpartum terms. We are also addressing the lives of those children under the age of--

[International Development, March 17th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, we should be clear that this government does care about women and does care about the health of women. We have chosen to focus the world's lens on saving the lives of mothers and children. We know what we can do by providing clean water, vaccinations and better nutrition. As well the most effective way is the training of health care workers and improving access for those women. That is what we are going to do.

[International Cooperation, March 17th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, as I just said, 75% of mothers are dying within 48 hours after delivery. In fact, 17% of those maternal deaths happen during childbirth and 71% happen in the postpartum period. Out of the 75%, 45% of those deaths happen within 24 hours of giving birth.

Far too many lives are being sacrificed when we can do something about it. This is the time we should act.

[International Cooperation, March 17th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, we have been very clear since our great announcement, accepted by all countries in the G8. This initiative is about saving the lives of mothers and children. As we know, 500,000 women die in pregnancy and childbirth every year and an estimated 75% of maternal deaths occur within 48 hours after delivery. This hard fact is something we can do something about, and that is what we intend to do, at the G8, along with our colleagues.

[International Aid, March 16th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, let me reiterate that we have been reviewing all of the projects. We have been reviewing all of the programs at CIDA. As with this year's budget and every budget that we have articulated, we want to increase the effectiveness of our programs. This process is being undertaken and will continue to be undertaken to ensure we get value for our international aid dollars.

[International Aid, March 16th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, as this government has said since it took office, we want to ensure that our international efforts and our international assistance is going to bring real change for people living in poverty. That is why we are supporting projects that actually improve water, health care and education.

However, there are many good projects that are undertaken by religiously-affiliated organizations and we will continue to support those projects by those organizations.

[Vues D'Afrique, March 15th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, as you know, this government is about making Canada's international assistance more efficient, more effective and more accountable.

As the Minister of Finance said in the budget, programs are being reviewed to get results. When we looked at this program we saw that it did not guarantee complete and maximized access to all Canadians for them to be aware of the product. We believe that our tax dollars can be used more effectively by actually helping people in developing countries.

[Haiti, March 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, quite contrary to nada, in fact, this government put forward $85 million immediately in the early days following the earthquake. We have also supported Canadian charities. There are over 357 charities in Canada that have received the support of generous Canadians and we know that the humanitarian relief needs are being met.

We are now confirming the contributions for the matching fund and the matching fund will go toward recovery and reconstruction in line with the plans of the government.