In Africa, Mélanie Joly announces a donation of 1 million to help stem COPD

Photo: Adrian Wyld The Canadian Press Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly's trip comes just days after the Liberals launched consultations on their approach to partnerships in Africa.

The Canadian Press in Ottawa

Published at 9:05 a.m. Updated at 12:56 p.m.

• Canada

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says Canada will provide $1 million to help stem the spread of COPD in Africa, as her government develops a much-delayed plan for how to work with the continent.

The funding will go to the World Health Organization (WHO), which is trying to contain the spread of the virus that causes the disease formerly known as monkeypox, which is spreading rapidly across Africa. The WHO issued its highest level of international alert on Wednesday as cases on the continent are surging.

Mélanie Joly is visiting a vaccination coordination centre in Côte d’Ivoire on Monday, before spending two days in South Africa starting Wednesday.

The visit to the West African country is aimed at exploring shared priorities in the fight against terrorism and reaffirming Canada’s ties with both English- and French-speaking countries. As for the meetings in South Africa, they will allow Ms. Joly to discuss the economic partnership between the two countries and to mark the 30th anniversary of the end of apartheid.

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This trip comes just days after the Liberals launched consultations on their approach to partnerships in Africa, including to consider the best place to place diplomats and priority issues.< /p>

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has asked Canada to donate part of its stockpile of vaccines that can help stem pox, but Ottawa has only replied that he was exploring how he could help.

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The newly announced funding will be used to improve disease detection and reporting systems, including by strengthening laboratory testing and accelerating research, Joly’s office said.

This builds on a $2 million contribution Canada has made to the WHO to respond to health emergencies around the world.

South Africa has previously criticized countries like Canada for hoarding much-needed COVID-19 vaccines in Africa and for failing to support efforts to lift patents on COVID-19 drugs and vaccines, which are rarely authorized for manufacturing in African countries.

“Canada is supporting our African and multilateral partners in their efforts to accelerate the response to the current outbreak of mpox,” Mélanie Joly said in a statement. “We stand ready to contribute to the global response and do our part to slow the spread of the virus.”

Canada lagging behind in Africa

The Liberals have been developing what they first called an Africa strategy for nearly three years, but downgraded the draft last year to a framework. In April, a senior official said there was no longer an official name for the plan, which Ottawa has been calling its “approach” to the continent since this week.

Public administration experts have previously pointed out that strategies refer to multi-year plans that often include allocations of funds, while frameworks are a generic set of principles.

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

Africa is bucking a global trend of demographic decline, with a burgeoning youth population and a series of trade deals and infrastructure projects that economists say will lead to rapid economic growth.

Canada has already committed to developing some kind of economic cooperation plan with Africa and concluded consultations on it last summer. It is not clear whether this project will be integrated into the broader approach led by Minister Joly.

International aid experts have called on Ottawa to better publicize the projects it funds on the continent and to adopt a more coherent approach to both development and trade.

Groups such as One Campaign and Cuso International have argued that Canada is losing relevance due to its continued disengagement, ceding ground to Russia and China.