Canada Supports Sustainable Livelihoods and Health in Ghana / Canada helps Ghana diversify its economy and improve health services and nutrition
OTTAWA, Canada, April 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ – Senator Larry Smith, on behalf of the Honourable Christian Paradis, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, announced today Canada’s contribution to a number of development initiatives in Ghana, including the Building Capacity for Sustainable Livelihoods and Health project.
Through a partnership with McGill University, this new initiative will help to improve the food security, dietary quality and nutritional status of women and children, while diversifying economic activities in rural areas of the Upper Manya Krobo District of Ghana.
“Canada is working with the Ghanaians to help diversify their economy and improve health services and nutrition, particularly for women and girls,” said Senator Smith. “We are proud to partner with strong Canadian academic institutions, such as McGill University, to give people in developing countries such as Ghana the tools they need to escape poverty and lead healthy, productive lives.”
“McGill University thanks the Government of Canada for its generous support and for recognizing our strong tradition of successfully mobilizing research results for the benefit of the global community,” said Dr. Rosie Goldstein, Vice-Principal, Research and International Relations. “Through improved food and nutrition interventions, this project will make an enormous impact on the health outcomes and lives of children and women in rural Ghana, now and in the future.”
The other two initiatives announced today are already underway and will improve food security and livelihoods of farmers and their families in Ghana.
Quick Facts
• In 2010, the Government of Canada supported the launch of the McGill University Institute for Global Food Security to provide training and capacity-building on food security in developing countries.
• Working in partnership with principal collaborators World Vision Canada and the University of Ghana, the new McGill University initiative will improve the economic well-being, food security, nutrition and health of 21,000 rural residents in the Upper Manya Krobo District.
• All three projects in Ghana announced today complement the Government of Canada’s top development priority of improving maternal, newborn, and child health in developing countries.
• Since 1990, the Ghanaian government has worked closely with the donor community to halve the number of citizens living in extreme poverty. However, some two million people still have limited access to food, and children remain particularly vulnerable.
• Backgrounder: Canada Supports Development Initiatives in Ghana
SOURCE
Canada – Ministry of Foreign Affairs
