No Images? Click here Federal budget increases international assistance March 2018 Issue No. 67Quotation of the month
Federal budgetOn February 27, 2018, Finance Minister Bill Morneau tabled the Liberal government’s third budget. For agencies working in the area humanitarian assistance, the budget offered good news with an increase in foreign aid, although for some the increase didn't go far enough. The budget promises $2 billion of increased international aid over five years to advance the government's feminist international assistance agenda. This is the biggest increase in Canadian foreign aid in 16 years. However, while the initial boost will be nine per cent more than last’s year’s budget, the increases between 2019 and 2023 will be less than two per cent a year. According to the Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC), this will be barely enough to keep Canada at a level of official development assistance (ODA) of 0.26 per cent of gross national income, which is still well below the 0.7 per cent target established by a UN resolution in 1970. Other good news in the budget was the billions of dollars pledged for reconciliation between Canada and indigenous peoples, with increased funds promised for child and family services, housing on reserves and for Inuit and Metis peoples, and improvements to drinking water in Indigenous communities. Ottawa Office student seminarThe annual Ottawa Office Student Seminar took place February 15-17. This year’s theme was Palestine and Israel: Let No Walls Divide. Thirty students came from across Canada to hear from a wide range of speakers and engage in thought-provoking dialogue. Representing diverse perspectives, the speakers included Zionist and non-Zionist voices, Liberal and Conservative Members of Parliament, government and civil society representatives, Jews, Palestinians, and our own MCC workers. The seminar included a tour of Parliament, a visit to Question Period, and an enactment of MCC's Palestine Land Exercise (see below), an interactive group simulation of the modern history of Israel and Palestine. Read one student’s reflection on the seminar.
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