Canada will set aside 43.4 million Canadian dollars (USD42 million) of the 1.1 billion Canadian dollars pledged by Canada in June’s G-8 summit as aid to francophone African countries.
The money will back nine projects aimed at improving food security, combating child abuse, and supporting African partners in the areas of environmental sustainability, nutritional education, microfinance and children’s welfare.
The funding comprises 13.5 million Canadian dollars to help female victims of violence in the Great Lakes region, 12.1 million Canadian dollars for a microfinance project in Benin, 5 million Canadian dollars to curb undernourishment and hunger in Senegal, and 3 million Canadian dollars for a regional agricultural program, CTV News reports.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper pledged the money at the 13th Francophonie Summit, held over the weekend, where the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria urged Francophone countries to strengthen the fight against AIDS.
