Close X
Monday, November 25, 2024
ADVT 
National

Joly announces $1M to help stem mpox in Africa as Liberals craft continental plan

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 19 Aug, 2024 10:06 AM
  • Joly announces $1M to help stem mpox in Africa as Liberals craft continental plan

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says Canada will provide $1 million to help stem mpox in Africa as her government assembles a long-delayed plan on how to engage with the continent.

The funding will go to the World Health Organization as it tries to contain the spread of the virus formerly known as monkeypox, which has been spreading rapidly across Africa.

Joly is visiting a vaccination co-ordination centre in Ivory Coast, ahead of a visit to South Africa for two days starting Wednesday.

The visit to the West African nation is aimed at exploring shared counterterrorism priorities and affirming Canada's ties with both French-speaking countries.

Joly's office says she will also discuss economic partnership between Canada and South Africa and mark 30 years since the end of apartheid.

The trip comes days after the Liberals launched consultations for what they are now calling their approach to Africa, which includes where to best station diplomats and what issues to focus on.

The African Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has asked Canada to donate some of its stockpile of mpox vaccines, though Ottawa has only said it's looking at how it can help.

The newly announced funding will go toward improving detection and reporting systems for mpox, such as boosting laboratory testing and speeding up research, according to Joly's office.

The funding builds on a $2-million contribution Canada has made for the WHO to respond to health emergencies worldwide. 

South Africa previously called out countries like Canada for hoarding COVID-19 vaccines that were sorely needed in Africa, and for not supporting efforts to lift patents on COVID-19 medicines and vaccines that were rarely allowed to be manufactured in African countries.

"Canada stands with our African and multilateral partners in their efforts to accelerate the response to the current mpox outbreak," Joly said in a statement. "We are prepared to assist with the global response and do our part to stop the spread of the virus."

The Liberals have been assembling what they first called an Africa strategy for nearly three years, but they downgraded the project last year to call it a framework. In April, a senior bureaucrat said there was no longer a noun being used to describe the plan, which as of this week Ottawa now calls its "approach" to the continent.

Experts in public administration have previously pointed out that strategies are multi-year plans that often have funding allocations, while frameworks are a generic set of principles.

In 2022, senators on the foreign-affairs committee warned that Canada was falling behind both peers and adversaries in forming economic ties on the continent.

Africa is bucking a global trend of demographic decline, with a booming young population and a series of trade deals and infrastructure projects that economists expect will lead to economic booms.

Canada has already pledged some sort of plan for economic co-operation with Africa, and finished a consultation last summer. It's unknown whether this project will be folded into the broader approach Joly is leading.

Aid experts have called on Canada to better brand the projects it funds on the continent and to have a more coherent approach to both development and trade.

Groups like the One Campaign and CUSO International have testified that Canada is losing relevance through continued disengagement, and thus ceding ground to Russia and China.

 

MORE National ARTICLES

Beach art mischief

Beach art mischief
Mounties in West Shore say a man has been arrested after setting fire to the mammoth statue at Royal Bay Beach.  Police say they responded to a call Monday at 7 a-m after a man who experienced a mental health crisis started a fire at the Esquimalt Lagoon.

Beach art mischief

Knife attack in Nanaimo by a man wearing a bra on his head

Knife attack in Nanaimo by a man wearing a bra on his head
R-C-M-P say the attacker swung the knives at the man, attempting to stab him, but the large dog lunged and bit him before the dog's owner used his martial arts training to incapacitate the other man and take control of the knives.

Knife attack in Nanaimo by a man wearing a bra on his head

Fatal shooting in Winnipeg followed soccer game, police say it was not random

Fatal shooting in Winnipeg followed soccer game, police say it was not random
Winnipeg police are investigating a shooting in the parking lot of a soccer complex that left a 22-year-old man dead. Police say they were called to the scene late Saturday night, after the final game of the Canada African Cup of Nations soccer tournament, and found a man with gunshot wounds.

Fatal shooting in Winnipeg followed soccer game, police say it was not random

Highway improvements coming to B.C. northwest, including better Wi-Fi access

Highway improvements coming to B.C. northwest, including better Wi-Fi access
The B.C. and federal governments are jointly providing $195 million for a series of highway improvements in Tahltan Nation territory in the province's northwest. A statement from B.C.'s Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation says the funding will enhance road safety, while improving access to services for local communities and for development of critical minerals. 

Highway improvements coming to B.C. northwest, including better Wi-Fi access

Single-use plastic bags banned as next round of B.C. plastic regulations kicks in

Single-use plastic bags banned as next round of B.C. plastic regulations kicks in
Plastic shopping bags and other single-use products are no longer available at British Columbia stores as the government implements the latest step in its plan to phaseout certain plastic items and keep harmful chemicals out of landfills. Businesses may no longer provide single-use plastic shopping bags, and they must charge a minimum of $2 for new reusable bags or 25 cents for new paper bags.

Single-use plastic bags banned as next round of B.C. plastic regulations kicks in

Storms and wind moving in for part of B.C., boosting fire potential: wildfire service

Storms and wind moving in for part of B.C., boosting fire potential: wildfire service
Thunderstorms will be rolling into eastern B.C. by mid-week and winds will pick up, which the BC Wildfire Service says has the potential to increase fire activity in the province. The service says the hot and dry trend that has already led to increased fire activity will continue throughout the southern half of B.C.

Storms and wind moving in for part of B.C., boosting fire potential: wildfire service