Policy Updates

On December 9, 2024, Canada announced over CAD88 million (US$62 million) in funding over the next three years to the UN CERF, ahead of the high-level pledging event.

The funding aims to address the unprecedented global humanitarian needs, with an estimated 300 million people worldwide requiring emergency food, water, medical, sanitation, and protection services.

On November 29, 2024, Canadian Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen announced that Canada will provide CAD50 million (US$36 million) in further humanitarian assistance to address the urgent needs of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

The funding will support the UN, Red Cross, and experienced NGO partners to deliver emergency medical assistance, food, water, protection services, and other life-saving assistance.

Canada has allocated a total of CAD215 million (US$154 million) in ODA to the current crisis in Gaza, including this pledge.

On October 10 and 11, 2024, the G7's Health Ministerial Meeting took place in Ancona, Italy. The discussion focused on three overarching priorities: Global Health Architecture and Pandemic Preparedness and Response, healthy and active aging, and the One Health Approach.

The G7 Health Ministers Communiqué, released at the end of the meeting, highlights the G7's commitment to supporting SDG #3 through universal health coverage, primary health care, and sexual and reproductive health. This also includes maternal, neonatal, child, and adolescent health, strengthening the global health architecture by investing in PPR, promoting regional manufacturing of health products, and equitable access to quality health services.

The communiqué emphasized the health-related impacts of conflicts with a reference to the crises in Ukraine, Gaza, Lebanon, and Sudan. Furthermore, in the communiqué, the G7 Ministries committed to continue to support Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Global Fund, whose replenishment processes will occur in the upcoming months.

The Civil 7 engagement group, a platform through which civil society can engage with the G7, reacted with a communiqué in which they expressed an appreciation for the re-commitment to ending HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria through robust support for the Global Fund in its replenishment next year. This support is crucial to ending the three epidemics as agreed upon in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Finally, the G7 Health Ministers also adopted a policy brief on the opportunities presented by AI for both healthcare providers and patients.

On August 27, 2024, Cooperation Canada issued a joint statement to the Canadian Ministers of International Development and Foreign Affairs calling for greater action to address the ongoing crisis in Sudan.

The open letter acknowledged that 500 days into the violent conflict in Sudan, 26 million people face acute hunger, 10 million are now internally displaced, and the region has seen an increase of GBV.

The statement urged the government to:

• Demonstrate strong political leadership by prioritizing new funding to address forced displacement, uphold human rights, and provide emergency relief, including food assistance, healthcare, and shelter;
• Promote humanitarian access through diplomatic pressure to secure the delivery of emergency goods and services, especially for women and girls;
• Increase the focus on child protection through dedicated resources to support programs that prevent child rights violations, in particular, ensuring the protection of girls from GBV; and
• Increase diplomatic engagement to secure a ceasefire.

The statement acknowledged actions taken by the government to date, including sanctions and CAD132 million (US$98 million) in international assistance. However, it urged the Canadian government to increase coordinated efforts to end hostilities, ensure humanitarian access, and work toward reconciliation.

On August 23, 2024, Canadian Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen reaffirmed Canada’s solidarity with Ukraine and announced nearly CAD16 million (US$12 million) to support children and family services and address urgent humanitarian needs.

The funding includes:

• CAD10 million (US$7 million) over 5 years to UNICEF for a project that helps support the reintegration of Ukrainian children returning from neighboring countries, including those displaced and illegally transferred to Russia. The funding will enhance quality family-based care options and child protection services for vulnerable children; and
• Nearly CAD6 million (US$4 million) in humanitarian assistance to provide shelter, WASH, emergency health and protection services, including child protection and GBV mitigation and response.

On May 27, 2024, Canadian Minister of International Development, Ahmed Hussed announced more than CAD55 million (US$40 million) to address urgent civilian needs in Syria amid the ongoing conflict.

The new funding will address urgent civilian needs in Syria and the region, including providing food, WASH services, protection services including the prevention and response to GBV, and health services including the provision of access to SRH healthcare. Development assistance funding will also be allocated through existing projects in Iraq, Jordan, and Lebanon that benefit Syrian refugees and strengthen these countries’ ability to support displaced Syrians.

More than 13 years into the Syrian crisis, over 16 million people, or 70% of the population, urgently require assistance, and nearly 7 million Syrian refugees remain sheltered in neighboring countries. The new funding brings Canada’s total commitment to over CAD147 million (US$108 million) in international assistance funding to Syria and neighboring countries in 2024.

On May 16, 2024, Canadian Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen announced CAD65 million (US$48 million) in funding to address urgent civilian needs in Gaza amid the ongoing conflict, including food, medical assistance, and other essential services.

The funding includes CAD25 million (US$18 million) to UNRWA, previously announced in June 2023, as well as an additional CAD40 million (US$29 million) in new funding distributed to UNWRA and other trusted partners, including the CRC. The funding will support the distribution of food, water, emergency medical assistance, protection services, and other critical assistance.

Hussen also announced that Canada has delivered a payment of CAD25 million (US$18 million) to UNRWA as part of its previously announced existing multi-year commitment with the agency to help meet the education, health, and safety assistance needs of Palestinian refugees in the region.

Canada reiterated its condemnation of Hamas and their attack on October 7, 2023, as well as Canada’s demand for the immediate release of hostages, the urgent need for an immediate and sustained ceasefire in Gaza, and its commitment to a two-state solution.

On May 14-15, 2024, the C7 summit was held at the UN FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy, organized by the Italian Civil Society Coalition that led, coordinated, and moderated the C7 2024 process.

Approximately 400 global representatives took part in the event, as well as international decision-makers, including FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu, Italian G7 sherpa Ambassador Elisabetta Belloni, Cardinal, President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, Pope’s envoy for the Russian-Ukrainian conflict Matteo Maria Zuppi, and Director of the UN SDG Action Campaign Marina Ponti.

The official C7 communiqué that listed the international civil society recommendation to the G7’s Leaders around seven key issues was released at the event, which included:

• Economic justice and transformation;
• Climate, energy transformation, and environmental justice;
• Global health;
• Principled humanitarian assistance;
• Peace, common security, and nuclear disarmament;
• Human mobility and migration; and
• Food justice and food systems transformation.

On May 3, 2024, Canada announced CAD65 million (US$48 million) in international assistance funding to Lebanon, including CAD38 million (US$28 million) in development assistance funding and CAD27 million (US$20 million) in humanitarian assistance funding.

The humanitarian assistance will help provide WASH services, health care including SRH services, and protection services including for survivors of SGBV.

The development funding includes:

• CAD20 million (US$15 million) to the UN FAO to improve the capacities of farmers and increase food security in response to climate change and economic shocks;
• CAD13 million (US$10 million) to UNDP to improve the economic security and prosperity of women-led micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises in sectors with high growth and export potential; and
• CAD5 million (US$4 million) to UN Women and UNDP to address barriers facing women’s representation in decision-making and leadership positions, specifically for women in parliament and municipal councils.

On April 15, 2024, Canadian Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen participated in the International Humanitarian Conference for Sudan and its Neighbours, where he announced CAD132million (US$96 million) in international assistance funding to Sudan and neighbouring Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia, and South Sudan.

The announcement included nearly CAD101 million (US$73 million) in humanitarian assistance and nearly CAD32 million (US$23 million) in development assistance amid the ongoing armed conflict in Sudan. The funding is slated to provide crisis-affected people with emergency health services, food and nutrition assistance, protection services for gender-based violence survivors, and other assistance including shelter, water, and sanitation services. The development assistance will support critical programming in SRHR and education infrastructure.