Policy Updates

On September 14, 2023, the Canadian government announced that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will travel to New York from September 19-21, 2023, to participate in the 78^th UN General Assembly.

Trudeau announced his intention to advocate for enhanced international cooperation to address global challenges including climate change, security, democracy, human rights, access to health care, and financing for development. He also slated plans to reiterate Canada’s unwavering support for Ukraine as it defends itself against the Russian invasion.

As co-chair of the UN SDGs Advocates Group, Trudeau announced his plan to speak at the SDG Summit, where he intends to emphasize Canada’s leadership and commitment to implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Trudeau also announced plans to host a discussion in New York on how to improve international coordination and support to address the ongoing crisis in Haiti and foster sustainable development. Political instability, insecurity and armed violence, extreme inflation, and a cholera outbreak are currently worsening conditions in Haiti.

The Canadian delegation to the General Assembly will include Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly, Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen, and Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault.

On September 11, 2023, Canadian Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen announced CAD25 million (US$18 million) in funding for climate change and SRHR initiatives at the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi, Kenya.

The funding from Canada is slated to support nature-based climate solutions and conservation interventions in Africa, as well as continue Canada’s commitment to promote the SRHR of women and girls.

Initiatives in the announcement included:

• CAD5 million (US$4 million) to the Global Centre on Adaptation to help accelerate climate adaptation action across Africa with a focus on food security, resilient infrastructure, youth entrepreneurship, and climate adaptation finance;
• CAD3 million (US$2 million) to Oxfam Canada for the Her Future, Her Choice program to promote the SRHR of women and girls in Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia, with a focus on neglected areas of abortion, contraception, comprehensive sexuality education, and SRHR advocacy; and
• CAD17 million (US$12 million) to the International Institute for Sustainable Development to promote climate change resilience among women and local communities in Zambia, Uganda, Fiji, Belize, Namibia, Angola, and Zimbabwe.

On September 10, 2023, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced CAD131 million (US$96 million) in funding for climate change, food security, and gender equality programming at the G20 Summit in New Delhi.

The funding announced by Canada included:

• CAD63 million (US$46 million) to support climate change adaptation in Sub-Saharan Africa by helping to build climate-resilient economies, protect and increase biodiversity, and empower women and girls;
• CAD8 million (US$6 million) to develop inclusive agricultural value chains in Bolivia to improve resilience for vulnerable Indigenous populations in the face of climate change and food insecurity;
• CAD7 million (US$5 million) to the Catalytic Climate Finance Facility to address the impacts of climate change on economically vulnerable groups in LICs, particularly women and girls;
• CAD16 million (US$12 million) to help finance and grow women-led agricultural enterprises in Nigeria;
• CAD15 million (US$11 million) to help bolster food security in the Democratic Republic of Congo and increase incomes for women in the agricultural industry; and
• CAD22 million (US$16 million) to improve school nutrition in Burkina Faso, helping to alleviate food insecurity and address the nutrition and education needs of the most vulnerable, especially girls.

Trudeau’s attendance at the G20 concluded a series of engagements in the Indo-Pacific region, where he participated in the ASEAN Summit in Indonesia, met with many of the region’s leaders, and officially launched the ASEAN-Canada Strategic Partnership.

On August 30, 2023, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that he will travel to Indonesia from September 5-6 to participate in the ASEAN Summit, followed by Singapore from September 7-8 for a bilateral visit, and India from September 9-10 to participate in the G20 Summit.

In Indonesia, Trudeau will meet with President Joko Widodo to discuss shared priorities including climate change, food security, and advancing economic ties through energy production and trade. Trudeau noted that he will officially launch the ASEAN-Canada Strategic Partnership at the ASEAN Summit.

In Singapore, Trudeau will meet with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to discuss strengthening bilateral relations, particularly through promoting Canadian exports and investment opportunities. He will also meet with several key leaders in the private sector.

In India, at the G20 Summit, Trudeau intends to promote collaboration among G20 partners to tackle global crises including in the areas of climate change, international financial institution reform, food and energy security, gender equality, and global health. He will also continue to advocate for collective action to hold Russia accountable for the war in Ukraine.

On August 25, 2023, the UK government announced a provision of GBP10 million (US$13 million) to the new Global Biodiversity Framework Fund.

The new fund was approved in June 2023 and is to be managed by the GEF, which is housed in the World Bank.

Canada provided US$141 million to the fund, and Japan signalled that funding was forthcoming. However, total funding has so far fallen short of the US$200 million necessary to operationalize the fund.

On August 24, 2023, Canada announced CAD200 million (US$147 million) for the new Global Biodiversity Framework Fund to help halt and reverse biodiversity loss.

The announcement was made by Canadian International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen during the 7^th Assembly of the GEF, which Canada hosted in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The UK also pledged US$13 million for the GBFF, bringing the total amount of investment to US$160 million. This amount exceeded expectations for the fund, originally approved in June 2023 by the GEF Council, but fell short of the US$200 million necessary to make the fund operational.

Hussen announced that Canada will provide an additional CAD23 million (US$17 million) in funding for the GEF's 8^th Replenishment to help support global efforts to tackle interrelated challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. This additional funding builds on Canada’s initial contribution of CAD219 million (US$162 million) to the GEF’s 8^th Replenishment, which was announced at COP15 in December 2022.

On July 12, 2023, Canada announced a CAD450 million (US$341 million) contribution to the second replenishment of the Green Climate Fund, the world’s largest dedicated climate change fund and a critical funding mechanism of the Paris Agreement.

Canadian Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault made the announcement on behalf of Canadian Minister of International Development Harjit Sajjan, ahead of the seventh Ministerial on Climate Action. This funding, which is part of Canada’s CAD5.3 billion (US$4 billion) international climate finance commitment, will support clean energy transitions and climate-resilient development in LICs and MICs.

This contribution represented a 50% increase from Canada’s 2019 pledge during the GCF's first replenishment.

On June 22, 2023, on the sidelines of the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact in Paris, the UK, along with other key donors of the International Partnership Group agreed to provide EUR2.5 billion (US$3.2 billion) to support a Just Energy Transition Partnership with Senegal.

In addition to sovereign donors, including France, Germany, the EU, and Canada, the pledge befitted from the support of several multilateral development banks.

In the joint declaration, Senegal committed to strengthening its deployment of renewable energies as part of its Integrated Low-Cost Electricity Plan, aiming to reduce emissions and expand access. The funding will be provided over a three- to five-year period.

At the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London on June 21-22, 2023, Canadian International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan announced that Canada will provide a technical assistance grant valued at CAD20 million (US$15 million).

The grant was pledged to the EBRD to support climate adaptation, mitigation, and resilience projects in Ukraine.

During the conference, Sajjan also remarked that Canada and Ukraine recently concluded negotiations to modernize their bilateral free trade agreement, which will provide a strong legal framework for Canadian firms seeking to participate in Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts.

On the sidelines of the Summit for a New Financial Pact in Paris on June 22-23, 2023, Germany, together with France, the UK, EU, and Canada, signed an Energy Transition Partnership with Senegal worth US$2.7 billion.

The partnership aimed to support Senegal in expanding its share of renewable energies from current levels of 30% to 40% by 2030. It also included plans to release an investment strategy within twelve months of the signing.

The BMZ indicated it will focus on supporting the modernization and rehabilitation of the grid infrastructure, the improvement of the data basis in the field of renewable energies, and the development of policies and strategies for the development of the sector.

The agreement with Senegal was the second of its kind for Germany on the African continent, the first being South Africa.