OTTAWA, 21 April 2005 — Canada will provide aid to 25 of the world’s poorest countries, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, it was officially announced here yesterday.
Other countries to receive aid are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Zambia, Bolivia, Guyana, Honduras, Nicaragua, Cambodia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Ukraine.
In a policy statement, Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew said Ottawa will also focus on Darfur, the Middle East and Haiti as trouble spots where Canadian government can contribute more. He said special efforts would be made to help “failed and failing states” under Canada’s first fully integrated government-wide international policy framework.
Pettigrew also announced a two-pronged military strategy focusing on the defense of North America with the creation of a Canada Command and a Standing Contingency Task Force to respond to crises.
