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Cooperation Canada Welcomes New Prime Minister of Canada

Cooperation Canada Welcomes New Prime Minister of Canada

by | Mar 14, 2025 | News, Statement

Cooperation Canada congratulates Mark Carney on becoming the 24th Prime Minister of Canada.

At a time of global uncertainty, Canada has a unique opportunity to lead—defending human rights, strengthening global stability and building a safer, more prosperous future.

“As host of the G7 in 2025, Canada stands at a pivotal moment,” said Kate Higgins, CEO of Cooperation Canada. “This is our chance to step up, reaffirm our leadership on the world stage, and ensure our engagement reflects Canada’s values and interests.”

Global security and Canada’s security are deeply connected. International aid is not just about helping others—it is a strategic investment in Canada’s stability and prosperity. Cooperation Canada urges the government to take bold action, strengthening alliances and reinforcing Canada’s role as a force for global cooperation.

“We look forward to working with Prime Minister Carney, his government and all Canadian leaders, to ensure Canada meets this moment and helps shape a more secure, just and prosperous world,” added Higgins.

 

Notes to editors

  • Cooperation Canada is the national voice for Canadian international development and humanitarian organizations. Representing over 100 organizations, we convene, coordinate and advocate for effective, inclusive, and accountable international cooperation that contributes to a fairer, safer and more sustainable world.

 

For media inquiries, please contact:
Gabriel Karasz-Perriau
Communications Manager, Cooperation Canada
(514) 945-0309
[email protected]

Cooperation Canada Reaction to Canada’s Africa Strategy

Cooperation Canada Reaction to Canada’s Africa Strategy

by | Mar 13, 2025 | Finance, News, Statement

Ottawa, ON – Cooperation Canada welcomes the release of Canada’s Africa Strategy: A Partnership for Shared Prosperity and Security, a long-awaited framework for strengthening Canada’s engagement with the African continent. The Strategy outlines key commitments, from enhancing diplomatic and economic cooperation to supporting development, climate adaptation, peace and human rights. This represents a positive step forward in Canada’s relationship with Africa.

However, for the Strategy to succeed, it must go beyond words and translate into concrete actions.

“Canada’s Africa Strategy is a good step towards clearer and more strategic engagement with the fastest-growing region in the world,” said Kate Higgins, CEO of Cooperation Canada. “While this Strategy signals an important shift, Canada must ensure that it is backed by clear investments, measurable goals and sustained diplomatic, economic and international assistance efforts.”

“In an uncertain geopolitical context, where others are retreating, it is in Canada’s interest to remain globally engaged. Canada cannot afford to stand on the sidelines while others forge stronger partnerships with Africa,” said Kate Higgins. “Cooperation Canada is committed to working with our members and partners – in Canada and in Africa – to foster an action-oriented Canada-Africa relationship that strengthens international cooperation and helps to shape a safer, fairer and more prosperous world.”

Notes to editors

  • In recent years, Cooperation Canada and its members have actively engaged in consultations and dialogues with Global Affairs Canada, parliamentary committees, parliamentarians and others on Canada’s engagement with Africa.
  • Recommendations were shared with Parliament and Global Affairs Canada in 2024.
  • Cooperation Canada is the national voice for Canadian international development and humanitarian organizations. Representing over 100 organizations, we convene, coordinate and advocate for effective, inclusive, and accountable international cooperation that contributes to a fairer, safer and more sustainable world.

 

For media inquiries, please contact :
Gabriel Karasz-Perriau
Senior Communications Manager, Cooperation Canada
(514) 945-0309
[email protected]

2024 Cooperation Canada Awards Winners – Développement International Desjardins (DID)

2024 Cooperation Canada Awards Winners – Développement International Desjardins (DID)

by | Mar 10, 2025 | Members' Spotlight, Membership, News

On February 6, 2025, Cooperation Canada celebrated the 2024 Cooperation Canada Awards ceremony recognizing excellence and merit in the field of international cooperation by awarding prizes to individuals or organizations that have distinguished themselves in the past year.

Cooperation Canada and World University Services Canada (WUSC) were proud to present the 2024 Organizational Innovation and Impact Award, recognizing Canadian organizations that are doing impactful and innovative work, to Développement International Desjardins (DID)!

DID was honored with the award for its groundbreaking work in inclusive finance through the Aequitas investment fund. Launched in 2021, Aequitas supports inclusive financial institutions that promote sustainable inclusion for entrepreneurs and farmers, gender equality, and climate action. By providing patient capital, Aequitas helps empower vulnerable populations, enabling them to create decent jobs, improve access to healthcare and education, fight hunger, and escape poverty.

Initially funded with CAD 50 million from DID and Desjardins, Aequitas received an additional CAD 22.9 million in 2024 from Global Affairs Canada (GAC) through the International Aid Innovation Program (IAIP). This was GAC’s first investment in a Canadian limited partnership. In response, Desjardins reinvested CAD 15 million, bringing the total fund to CAD 87.9 million. Additionally, DID and GAC have collaborated on a technical assistance program to strengthen the capacity of Aequitas-supported financial institutions, enabling them to better serve their customers, particularly women, and improve their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance.

Congratulations, Développement International Desjardins (DID), on this well-deserved recognition! Read more about the other winners of this year’s Cooperation Canada Awards.

BHM 2025 – Interview with Bernabe Yameogo

BHM 2025 – Interview with Bernabe Yameogo

by | Feb 25, 2025 | Anti-racist cooperation, Members' Spotlight, Membership, News

For the second year, Cooperation Canada is celebrating Black History Month by highlighting the voices and contributions of Black leaders in Canadian international cooperation. Through this digital campaign, we are profiling changemakers, innovators and disruptors who are shaping the sector, sharing their achievements, challenges and perspectives. By amplifying these stories, we aim to foster greater recognition of Black leadership and inspire meaningful dialogue on equity and inclusion in international cooperation. Join us in recognizing and honouring these incredible leaders throughout February!

This week, we invite you to meet Bernabe Yameogo, freelance consultant.

Why did you decide to work in international cooperation and what have been some career highlights?

As Medical Doctor at the Regional Hospital in Burkina Faso, I was part of the health district management team, which enabled us to meet with communities to discuss their health problems and how they could participate in finding solutions. I realized how important it is to support communities in the global fight against poverty, so that their health status can improve. This was the beginning of my interest to international cooperation work.
 
During my career, I worked at different levels, I contributed of the development of community participation in health programming in West Africa. In Canada, I was able to position Plan International Canada as the federation’s leader in the acquisition and the implementation of high-quality programming of The Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in Africa and Latino-America, with a focus on gender mainstreaming in health programming. I also worked with Canadian Coalition to ensure that the government continued to finance appropriately the Global Fund during their 3 years replenishment.

What experiences have influenced your career as a Black person in the international cooperation sector?

Many Black professionals in international cooperation find themselves in spaces where they are underrepresented, especially in leadership roles. The good news is that many organizations are implementing diversity, equity and inclusion policy and this was great to influence Black person career in international cooperation. Accessing to networking and mentorship was crucial to my success in my career.

What are your hopes for the future, and what advice would you give to those wishing to work in international cooperation?

We had a good knowledge of the problems of international cooperation that are becoming more and more complex in a difficult economic context, but we had hope in the coordination of actions and the innovative approaches to solve development issues. We should move away from dependency-driven aid models toward empowering communities to drive their own development.
 
For those who want to engage in international cooperation work, consultation must be taken into consideration to develop projects that truly meet the needs of communities. They have also to keep in mind that working in international cooperation comes with challenges, bureaucracy, political shifts and sometimes slow progress. Persistence is crucial.
 
2024 Cooperation Canada Awards Winners – Dr. Roopan Gill

2024 Cooperation Canada Awards Winners – Dr. Roopan Gill

by | Feb 21, 2025 | Members' Spotlight, Membership, News

On February 6, 2025, Cooperation Canada celebrated the 2024 Cooperation Canada Awards ceremony recognizing excellence and merit in the field of international cooperation by awarding prizes to individuals or organizations that have distinguished themselves in the past year.

Cooperation Canada and World University Services Canada (WUSC) were proud to present the 2024 Individual Innovation and Impact Award, recognizing Canadian individuals that are doing impactful and innovative work, to Dr. Roopan Gill!

Dr. Roopan Gill is a leading expert in sexual and reproductive health, recognized globally for her innovative contributions to improving access to care in underserved and crisis-affected regions. As co-founder and CEO of Vitala Global, she has revolutionized reproductive healthcare through a groundbreaking digital health platform, aimed at providing abortion and contraception care to women and girls in some of the world’s most challenging contexts, including Venezuela, Guatemala, Colombia and Canada. With a background as an obstetrician-gynecologist and expertise in family planning and abortion care, Dr. Gill has worked extensively in emergency settings in Nigeria and Yemen with Doctors Without Borders, and supported women’s health projects in countries like Malawi, Chad and Pakistan.

Dr. Gill’s career also includes significant roles with the World Health Organization (WHO), where she contributed to the inclusion of Mifepristone in the WHO Essential Medicines List and was a key member of the Evidence Review team for the WHO’s Medical Management of Abortion guidelines. She holds a Masters in Public Health in Global Health from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and serves as a Clinical Investigator and Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto. Dr. Gill has been recognized in Forbes as one of seven female founders leading inclusive, impact-driven organizations and was named one of Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women in the Women of Courage category in 2022.

Congratulations, Dr. Gill, on this well-deserved recognition! Read more about the other winners of this year’s Cooperation Canada Awards.

2024 Cooperation Canada Awards Winners – Katrina Leclerc

2024 Cooperation Canada Awards Winners – Katrina Leclerc

by | Feb 19, 2025 | Members' Spotlight, News

On February 6, 2025, Cooperation Canada celebrated the 2024 Cooperation Canada Awards ceremony recognizing excellence and merit in the field of international cooperation by awarding prizes to individuals or organizations that have distinguished themselves in the past year. 

Cooperation Canada was proud to present the 2024 Karen Takacs Award, to Katrina Leclerc in recognition of her outstanding contributions to advancing women’s rights globally. A dedicated advocate, Katrina has been instrumental in shaping Canada’s Office of Women, Peace, and Security (WPS), amplifying youth voices, and supporting national action plans worldwide. Her leadership in feminist and inclusive peacebuilding reflects the award’s spirit, celebrating those who create meaningful change for women everywhere. 

At 21, Katrina began her work in gender equality and youth rights as a lead advisor to a Canadian Senator, playing a key role in establishing Canada’s WPS Ambassador role and advocating for Indigenous women’s rights in Canadian law. She later transitioned to the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders (GNWP) as Program Director, overseeing programs across 30+ countries and advocating for synergies between WPS and Youth, Peace and Security (YPS). She contributed to the development of National Action Plans (NAP), including Chad’s WPS NAP and DRC’s YPS NAP. As Chair of the Women, Peace and Security Network – Canada (WPSN-C) and co-founder of the Canadian Coalition for Youth, Peace & Security (CCYPS), Katrina led advocacy to integrate YPS into Canada’s WPS commitments, ensuring the 3rd National Action Plan became Canada’s most youth-sensitive WPS policy. A PhD Candidate in Conflict Studies, she focuses on the intersections of WPS and YPS with local peacebuilding. 

Congratulations, Katrina, on this well-deserved recognition! Read more about the other winners of this year’s Cooperation Canada Awards.