After seeming to suggest last week that foreign aid to Haiti had been suspended—CIDA later denied the suggestion—and musing aloud about garbage removal, Julian Fantino releases a statement to explain the government’s current position on assisting the country.
After seeming to suggest last week that foreign aid to Haiti had been suspended—CIDA later denied the suggestion—and musing aloud about garbage removal, Julian Fantino releases a statement to explain the government’s current position on assisting the country.
While the results of specific projects have largely met expectations, progress towards a self-sustaining Haitian society has been limited. Our government has a responsibility to maximize the value of Canadian taxpayer dollars. That is why Canada is reviewing its long-term engagement strategy with Haiti, like we do with all of our programs. We continue to make progress on areas of long-term development that we have previously committed to, and we stand ready to offer our support for the people of Haiti should future humanitarian crises arise.
However, we remain concerned with the slow progress of development in Haiti, in large part due to weaknesses in their governing institutions. We want to improve the results achieved and better address the needs and priorities of the Haitian people. Doing so requires greater leadership, accountability and transparency from the Government of Haiti so that they can take a greater role in the development of their country.