International Development  Mr. Speaker, despite the challenges Ukrainians face, they continue to look beyond their borders in supporting the fight against hunger in the global south. Our government commends Ukraine on its commitment to donating grain to help address the global food crisis as part of its grain from Ukraine humanitarian initiative.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, all contracts over the $10,000 amount and all grants and contributions contribution agreements of any dollar amount are proactively disclosed on this website: open.canada.ca. All contracts are proactively disclosed on a quarterly basis.

Foreign Affairs  Mr. Speaker, during our visit to Lviv, Ukraine, we had the opportunity to meet with youth from the Ukrainian Leadership Academy, and one thing is clear: Young people have contributed to Ukraine's resistance in the face of Putin's illegal war. These courageous students launched their own campaign called “Heroes Among Us”.

International Development  Mr. Speaker, the climate crisis is causing a food security crisis for the most vulnerable around the world. Hunger leads to conflict. This is why Canada was the fourth-largest single country donor to the World Food Programme in 2021, providing over $306 million in humanitarian funding for emergency food and nutritional assistance to people in need.

International Development  Mr. Speaker, Canada remains deeply concerned about the critical and worsening humanitarian situation that is unfolding in Afghanistan. This is why I announced that Canada is providing an additional $50 million for a total of $156 million in 2022 to help support the people of Afghanistan, particularly women and girls.

Global Food Insecurity  Madam Chair, anyone who has read about the history of conflict knows that a lot of the conflicts have started because of the lack of food. If we just look at the Syrian crisis, we see that it was because of food prices increasing that protests took place in Syria, and the Assad regime went extremely hard on the population when the uprising started.

Global Food Insecurity  Madam Chair, this is exactly what we are doing now. In addition to providing direct support, we are looking at the systems that we have put in place. A lot of investments have already been made. I visited a research lab in Nairobi that is looking at drought-resistant seeds and fertilizers, so there are a lot of things that we can leverage.

Global Food Insecurity  Madam Chair, the member rightly points out that this is a multi-faceted problem. First of all, we have an immediate crisis to feed the hungry because of the food that Vladimir Putin is not allowing to leave the ports, like Odessa. That is the immediate need. There is also an extra challenge now.

Global Food Insecurity  Madam Chair, as I stated, the grain is not allowed to leave the ports because of Vladimir Putin's war. His choice right now not to allow it to leave is creating a significant problem. We are working with our European partners and looking at how we can get the grain out, but even by using alternative methods, we would not be able to get enough out.

Global Food Insecurity  Madam Chair, Canada has a lot to offer, given the agricultural heartland within the Prairies. I also mentioned that we have a lot of NGOs in Canada that we can work with. I know there are significant investments being made in agriculture technology and in finding new methods. That is something that we can continue to leverage.

Global Food Insecurity  Madam Chair, first of all, I want to acknowledge all the firefighters who were here today and thank them for their sacrifice. Vladimir Putin's unwarranted invasion of Ukraine has triggered the largest shock to the global food system in the past 12 years. It has caused global food prices to rise over 30% since January of this year, and over 60% since the beginning of the pandemic.

Health  Mr. Speaker, Canada has stepped up to vaccinate the world. In fact, the 200 million doses we promised we have actually been delivering to multiple countries around the world. In fact, tomorrow I have another meeting with multiple nations to discuss the next steps. This is also a supply chain issue.

International Development  Mr. Speaker, Canada has stepped up when it comes to food security crises around the world. The impact that Putin's war in Ukraine has had on the food security crisis in the world is very troubling. That is why Canada has stepped up. We have announced approximately over $70 million to help.

International Development  Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to making sure that Ukraine has the humanitarian support that it needs. We will work with businesses. My team will contact the member's staff, look at the details and see what we can do.

International Development  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Willowdale for his strong advocacy. Since 2015, our government has been present for the Syrian people, with over $4 billion in funding, which includes significant humanitarian development and stabilization assistance. Today, I announced that we will continue to be there for them, with additional funding of over $229 million to Syria and the surrounding region.