Speech (committee meeting)

{
    "time": "2022-02-07 12:00:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Mr. Michael Grant (Assistant Deputy Minister, Americas, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development)",
        "fr": "M. Michael Grant (sous-ministre adjoint, Am\u00e9riques, minist\u00e8re des Affaires \u00e9trang\u00e8res, du Commerce et du D\u00e9veloppement)"
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"6938712\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938713\" data-originallang=\"fr\">I'm joined today by S\u00e9bastien Carri\u00e8re, Canada's ambassador to Haiti, and Sylvia Cesaratto, director general of Central America and the Caribbean at Global Affairs Canada.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938714\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Geographical proximity, a common language and the presence of over 165,000 members of the Haitian diaspora in Canada explain our current strong relationship with Haiti. Since the 2010 earthquake, Canada has provided $1.8 billion Canadian in aid to Haiti, including humanitarian aid. Canada is the second largest bilateral donor to Haiti after the United States, with an annual development assistance budget of $89 million Canadian in 2020\u201121. This makes Haiti the largest recipient of Canadian aid in the Americas. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938715\" data-originallang=\"fr\">At the United Nations, Canada chairs the Economic and Social Council's Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Haiti and is an active member of the Core Group on Haiti. This group includes the United Nations, Germany, Brazil, Canada, Spain, the United States, France, the European Union and the Organization of American States, or OAS. Canada also plays a very active role in the Haiti file within the OAS, as demonstrated by its participation in the OAS's good offices mission to Haiti in June 2021.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938716\" data-originallang=\"fr\">As committee members are no doubt aware, the situation in Haiti is particularly complicated. The country is facing multi\u2011dimensional crises that have been steadily worsening in recent years, and particularly in recent months. We're talking about the juxtaposition of political, security, humanitarian, social and economic crises. The country is considered a fragile state. The International Crisis Group placed Haiti on its list of 10 countries experiencing conflict that should be monitored closely in 2022. It remains critical to stay focused on this country.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938717\" data-originallang=\"en\">Mr. Chair, the events of the last six to eight months have exacerbated an already fragile situation in Haiti. Insecurity has increased as a result of clashes between gangs and kidnappings in Port-au-Prince. The assassination of President Jovenel Mo\u00efse has deepened the political crisis, as has collusion between gangs and political actors. The earthquake that struck the south of Haiti in August, the departure of 30,000 Haitian nationals from certain countries in the region, a fuel crisis and corruption all point to the challenges the country now faces.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938718\" data-originallang=\"fr\">The United Nations reported last week that the current humanitarian situation is one of the most difficult in Haiti's history. An estimated 4.9 million people, or 43% of the population, are now in need of assistance and are food insecure. The worsening humanitarian situation directly affects migration from Haiti to all countries in the area.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938719\" data-originallang=\"fr\">It should be noted that the United Nations' presence on the ground, outside the enforcement agencies, is now limited to a political mission without an armed presence. This mission is the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti, or BINUH, whose mandate expires in July.</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"6938712\" data-originallang=\"en\">Merci beaucoup, monsieur le pr\u00e9sident.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938713\" data-originallang=\"fr\"> Je suis accompagn\u00e9 aujourd'hui de l'ambassadeur du Canada en Ha\u00efti, M. S\u00e9bastien Carri\u00e8re, ainsi que de la directrice g\u00e9n\u00e9rale de la section de l'Am\u00e9rique centrale et des Cara\u00efbes d'Affaires mondiales Canada, Mme Sylvia Cesaratto.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938714\" data-originallang=\"fr\">La proximit\u00e9 g\u00e9ographique, une langue commune et la pr\u00e9sence de plus de 165 000 membres de la diaspora ha\u00eftienne au Canada expliquent la forte relation que nous entretenons aujourd'hui avec Ha\u00efti. Depuis le tremblement de terre de 2010, le Canada a apport\u00e9 1,8 milliard de dollars canadiens en aide \u00e0 Ha\u00efti, y compris l'aide humanitaire. Le Canada est le second donateur bilat\u00e9ral, apr\u00e8s les \u00c9tats\u2011Unis, en Ha\u00efti, avec un budget annuel d'aide au d\u00e9veloppement qui s'\u00e9levait \u00e0 89 millions de dollars canadiens en 2020\u20112021. Cela fait d'Ha\u00efti le plus important b\u00e9n\u00e9ficiaire de l'aide canadienne dans les Am\u00e9riques. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938715\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Aux Nations unies, le Canada pr\u00e9side le Groupe consultatif ad hoc sur Ha\u00efti du Conseil \u00e9conomique et social et est un membre actif du Core Group en Ha\u00efti, qui est compos\u00e9 des Nations unies, de l'Allemagne, du Br\u00e9sil, du Canada, de l'Espagne, des \u00c9tats\u2011Unis, de la France, de l'Union europ\u00e9enne et de l'Organisation des \u00c9tats am\u00e9ricains, l'OEA. Le Canada est \u00e9galement tr\u00e8s actif dans le dossier ha\u00eftien au sein de l'OEA, comme en t\u00e9moigne sa participation, en juin 2021, \u00e0 la Mission de bons offices de l'OEA, qui s'est d\u00e9roul\u00e9e en Ha\u00efti.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938716\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Comme les membres du Comit\u00e9 le savent tr\u00e8s certainement, la situation en Ha\u00efti est particuli\u00e8rement complexe. Le pays fait face \u00e0 des crises multidimensionnelles qui n'ont cess\u00e9 de s'aggraver au cours des derni\u00e8res ann\u00e9es, et particuli\u00e8rement au cours des derniers mois. Il est question ici de la juxtaposition de crises politiques, s\u00e9curitaires, humanitaires, sociales et \u00e9conomiques. L'\u00c9tat est consid\u00e9r\u00e9 comme un \u00c9tat fragile, que l\u2019International Crisis Group a plac\u00e9 sur sa liste des 10 pays en conflit \u00e0 suivre de pr\u00e8s en 2022. Il est donc primordial de garder notre attention sur ce pays.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938717\" data-originallang=\"en\">Monsieur le pr\u00e9sident, les \u00e9v\u00e9nements des six \u00e0 huit derniers mois ont aggrav\u00e9 la situation d\u00e9j\u00e0 fragile \u00e0 Ha\u00efti. L'ins\u00e9curit\u00e9 a augment\u00e9 en raison d'affrontements entre gangs et d'enl\u00e8vements \u00e0 Port\u2011au\u2011Prince. L'assassinat du pr\u00e9sident Jovenel Mo\u00efse a aggrav\u00e9 la crise politique, de m\u00eame que la collusion entre les gangs et les acteurs politiques. Le s\u00e9isme qui a frapp\u00e9 le sud du pays, en ao\u00fbt, le d\u00e9part de 30 000 ressortissants ha\u00eftiens de certains pays de la r\u00e9gion, une crise du combustible et du carburant et la corruption, tous ces facteurs pointent dans la direction des d\u00e9fis qu'Ha\u00efti doit d\u00e9sormais relever.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938718\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Les Nations unies ont indiqu\u00e9, la semaine derni\u00e8re, que le contexte humanitaire actuel constituait l'une des p\u00e9riodes les plus difficiles de l'histoire d'Ha\u00efti. On estime maintenant que 4,9 millions de personnes, soit 43 % de la population, ont besoin d'assistance et vivent dans l'ins\u00e9curit\u00e9 alimentaire. L'aggravation de la situation humanitaire a des r\u00e9percussions directes sur les mouvements migratoires en provenance d'Ha\u00efti dans tous les pays de la r\u00e9gion.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"6938719\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Notons que la pr\u00e9sence des Nations unies sur le terrain, \u00e0 l'ext\u00e9rieur des agences d'ex\u00e9cution, se r\u00e9sume d\u00e9sormais \u00e0 une mission politique sans pr\u00e9sence arm\u00e9e, \u00e0 savoir le Bureau int\u00e9gr\u00e9 des Nations unies en Ha\u00efti, ou BINUH, dont le mandat arrive \u00e0 \u00e9ch\u00e9ance en juillet prochain.</p>"
    },
    "url": "/committees/foreign-affairs/44-1/4/michael-grant-1/",
    "politician_url": null,
    "politician_membership_url": null,
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "11498462",
    "document_url": "/committees/foreign-affairs/44-1/4/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fcommittees%2Fforeign-affairs%2F44-1%2F4%2F"
    }
}