What keeps KC up at night?

Every 3 seconds a child dies as a result of poverty. With over one billion people in the world live in abject poverty, 50, 000- one third of all the world's deaths are an unavoidable result.

A quarter of a million Canadians support initiatives focused on eleviating and/or abolishing extreme world poverty. However, Canada has fallen short on it's 2005 promise to introduce legislation that ensures 0.7% of our Gross National Income will fulfill Canada's human rights obligations by 2015.

In 2000 all members of the United Nations committed to the Millennium Development Goals- time-bound and quantified targets for addressing 8 goals that will ultimately address the many dimensions of extreme poverty including: income poverty, hunger, disease, lack of adequate shelter, promote gender equality, education and environmental sustainability.

Canada has barely devoted less than half of the minimum requirement and unless action is taken now, it is grim we will devote 0.7% of our GNI by 2015.

Enter the Better Aid Bill (c-293)!

In 2006, MP John McKay introduced a private member's bill, dubbed the Better Aid Bill (Bill C-293). When passed, Bill C-293 will ensure that Canada's foreign aid spending focuses on ending poverty consistent with our human rights obligations.

Bill C-293 will also allow the perspective of those actually living in poverty to be taken into account under this new law. By allowing residents of developing countries to submit written feedback to a committee should they feel that foreign aid spending isn't being used properly.

The law would also require parliamentarians to annually review all aid spending whether through CIDA or other departments like Finance and Foreign Affairs. I agree with the Canadian Coalition to End Global Poverty, that the recommendation to shift all of Canada's aid spending to the Department of Foreign Affairs is a mistake. "When development has to compete with trade, security and geo-politics - it's the poor who lose out"

Time To Take Action!

You want to help Make Poverty History? Then contact your local MP, RIGHT NOW and ask them to vote in favour of Bill C-293! Speed it required, this bill is being considered in the looming shadow of a pre-election debate over Canada's next federal budget. If the Government falls on the budget, the aid bill will probably be scrapped.

All is takes is a phone call, a letter or an email to say:

"Dear INSERT MP's NAME HERE,

I am in support of Bill C-293.

I ask you to vote in favour of the Better Aid Bill as a positive step in Canada's commitment to deliver .7% of our GNI to assist in addressing the many dimensions of extreme poverty including: income poverty, hunger, disease, lack of adequate shelter, promote gender equality, education and environmental sustainability.

Sincerely,

YOUR NAME HERE"

Just click here to get your MP's contact information. They are home in their constituencies right now on March Break. When they return to Parliament, the bill will be up to vote.

Thanks, Kids. Now I can get back to sleep!