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Liberal MP fears Ottawa will imminently release a cash-strapped Africa strategy

  • Dylan Robertson

  • Canadian Press

  • February 18, 2025

London West MP Arielle Kayabaga speaks as then-Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino looks on during an announcement in Ottawa, Tuesday, March 21, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

OTTAWA -- A Liberal MP who has long advocated for closer ties with Africa fears her government is on the verge of releasing an Africa strategy that has no significant spending attached.

Ontario MP Arielle Kayabaga has helped the government craft an Africa strategy since it announced a plan was in the works in early 2022.

The government downgraded the project to a framework in 2023, but said last fall that a strategy was still in the works.

Kayabaga says she believes the government will release a strategy this month, but she's concerned that there won't be funding on par with the Indo-Pacific strategy because Parliament is prorogued.

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly is responding to that concern by noting the billions that Ottawa has spent in aid for African countries in recent years.

The government has said the strategy aims to identify regions and topics where Canada should focus its diplomatic efforts on the continent, to build on existing aid and trade projects.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2025.