(2005-33) News Release
Ottawa - Minister of International Cooperation Aileen Carroll and Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew today announced that Canada will provide $4.8 million over five years to promote sustainable agriculture in the towns of Marmelade and Plaisance in northern Haiti.
"This is a clear indication that the Canadian Government remains a strong partner in helping Haitian farmers elaborate the tools and skills needed to achieve viable agricultural development," Minister Carroll said. "The empowerment of the men and women of Haiti is a crucial step on the road to building environmentally stable and economically sound communities in rural parts of the country."
This initiative, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and managed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), will contribute to poverty reduction through agricultural commercialisation, agro-forestry and local governance activities. This initiative is part of Canada's broader financial commitment of more than $180 million over two years to Haiti's reconstruction and development efforts.
The announcement follows the visit to the region by Canadian Ambassador Claude Boucher. He was accompanied by the Haitian Minister of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development, Philippe Mathieu, and FAO representative Amadou Moustapha Kamara.
"Canada remains firmly committed to accompany the Haitian people towards a peaceful and sustainable society - a society where the people are able to identify and manage their own development needs and priorities," added Minister Pettigrew.
Funding for this initiative was provided for in the February 2005 Federal Budget and is built into the existing fiscal framework
Information
Andrew Graham, Director of Communications, Office of the Minister of International Cooperation, Telephone: (819) 953-6238
Media Relations Office, Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Telephone: (819) 953-6534, E-mail: info@acdi-cida.gc.ca
Sébastien Théberge, Director of Communications, Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Telephone: (613) 995-1851
Media Relations Office, Foreign Affairs Canada, Telephone: (613) 995-1874