When Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper made maternal and child health a development priority for his country, committing 2.85 billion Canadian dollars ($2.5 billion) to the cause between 2010 and 2015, he assured the public that transparency would be ensured, and results delivered.
“The important thing will be to show everybody results, and that we are not just a bunch of people here looking for money,” he said during the Saving Every Woman Every Child summit, held last May in Toronto.
But as Canada moves on to the second phase of the Muskoka Initiative with a renewed funding of CA$3.5 billion over the next five years, whether the government has delivered on that pledge and successfully demonstrated the effectiveness of the first phase is up for debate.