(Return tabled) Question No. 454 Ms. Hélène Laverdière: With regard to the Extractives Cooperation for Enhanced Economic Development (EXCEED) Program under the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (DFATD): (a) which officials from DFATD and other departments, including the Privy Council Office, will be responsible for administering this program; (b) what was the entire process, including consultation, leading to the establishment of the program and what were the related dates; (c) did an external audit and evaluation committee assess the creation of this program; (d) what are (i) the reasons for establishing this progr ...[+++]am, (ii) the objectives, (iii) the mandate, (iv) the operations of this program; (e) how many employees will be assigned to manage and administer this program and what are their responsibilities; (f) are projects required to focus exclusively on African countries; (g) why was Latin America not included in this program; (h) what is the process for submitting project proposals; (i) will there be a tendering process; (j) when will the next request for proposals be issued; (k) how many project proposals has the program received since it was established; (l) what are the selection criteria and what is the complete project selection process; (m) who is eligible for funding under the program; (n) can private-sector companies receive funding under this program; (o) will a webpage be created on the DFATD website; (p) how much does this initiative cost; (q) what type of funding does this program award; (r) can the public or businesses contribute to the program now or in the future; (s) why was an initial budget of $25 million allocated; (t) will the budget be increased or decreased; (u) why was this program not announced in Canada’s Economic Action Plan 2014; (v) what indicators and measurement tools will be used to assess the effectiveness of projects funded by the program; (w) what specific measures have been taken and wha ...

CONSIDERING the commitments made by donor and recipient countries to improve development aid effectiveness by applying the principles of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness adopted in 2005.

Canada has been engaged in bilateral efforts with developing countries that integrate gender equality into new aid modalities and other frameworks that implement the international aid effectiveness framework, e.g., the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness and the Accra Agenda for Action.

The international community, in particular through the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness and the Accra Agenda for Action have made aid effectiveness and evaluation of the aid results a priority objective.

The amendment to clause 2, to include the principles of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, is most important as it links this bill — and ultimately this policy — to one of the most significant references in international development; the Paris Declaration.

I should also like to open up for discussion the possibility of having the bill align itself more closely toward compliance with the new guidelines set out in the 2005 Paris Declaration, which outlines the amount of aid but more specifically the effectiveness of aid in recipient countries.