Guest blog by Mario Renaud and Robert Letendre, November 18, 2021
Most observers of Canada’s place on the international stage will regretfully acknowledge that Canada’s foreign policy pales in comparison to what it once was. We are a long way now from a time when Lester B. Pearson was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his commitment to multilateral peacekeeping. But it is not too late to rejuvenate Canada’s voice and influence in the international community.
Recognizing our global interdependence
Globalization and countries’ interdependence make it essential that international cooperation be based on true solidarity. Canada must put solidarity at the heart of its foreign policy. It must become more proactive and join forces with other nations to help save our planet and indeed humanity.
We are facing an existential threat to humanity’s very survival. The devastating and escalating effects of global warming and the accompanying loss of the planet’s biodiversity simply cannot be resolved by a single nation – no matter how ambitious those efforts may be. Canada and the United States had to cooperate to combat the harmful effects of acid rain on the Great Lakes, for wind and rain recognize no boundaries. To this day, maintaining water quality in the Great Lakes requires international coordination.
Some problems are global in scale. The most pressing one is the escalating threat of climate change. We must recognize that only coordinated international action will help mitigate impending global shocks and facilitate our adaptation to an emerging new world. These efforts must be based upon science, be unprecedented in their ambition and take into account the capacities of the poorest and most vulnerable populations.
Multiple problems
We must not lose hope. In his last speech to the Canadian Parliament, US President Barack Obama referred to the Montreal Protocol’s success in protecting the ozone layer. This agreement led to the active collaboration of close to 200 countries. One significant result was the transfer of billions of dollars to developing countries through a multilateral fund based in Montreal. The program’s success demonstrates the potential impact of global solidarity.
COVID-19 has opened our eyes to the growing probability of future global pandemics. It is a vivid demonstration that no single country or region can isolate itself behind a wall of self-protection.
Conflicts persist within and between countries and always have impacts far beyond their borders. They result in dramatically increasing migration flows and staggering numbers of refugees. These conflicts have their origins in a variety of factors, including poverty and inequality, the effects of global warming, power struggles, and ethnic, racial or religious tensions. The difficulties in resolving these issues are exacerbated by blind nationalism, the unproductive purism of a sanctimonious left, unilateralism and international terrorism.
Revitalizing Canada’s contribution
In the 1960s, under Pearson’s leadership, Canada proposed that industrialized countries commit 0.7% of their gross national income (GNI) to international development assistance. Canada, however, has not lived up to this target and has become one of the least generous countries of the industrialized world. In 2017, Canada allocated only 0.26% of its GNI to official development assistance, while countries such as Sweden, Denmark, Norway and the United Kingdom met or exceeded the globally accepted United Nations target.
The time has come for Canada to revitalize its international cooperation program. Our country is one of the richest in the world. We have the resources and capacity to implement a form of cooperation that is in solidarity with poorer countries and vulnerable populations – because we want to live in a peaceful and just world, in harmony with its environment.
Canada must do more to mitigate global warming and protect our environment and the world’s biodiversity. We must accelerate the transition to a decarbonized economy and to a more responsible and sustainable use of natural resources.
Canada must implement programs that support the most vulnerable and least favoured nations on the planet. Such efforts include funding national health and education programs, especially for women and girls, and supporting a genuine global immunization program against COVID-19 and other pandemics.
Effective partnerships
Canada must be a leader in the international community with the aim of strengthening national, regional and international mechanisms for conflict prevention and resolution. Canada must pressure leaders of the most powerful countries to limit their military expenditures, refrain from provoking conflict designed to increase their own power, and actively contribute to the establishment of genuine global peace, security and justice.
Canada must work harder to promote democratic principles and good governance globally. This will make it more feasible to fight domestic and international corruption and to establish a more just, equitable and transparent global tax system.
We are very concerned that, in recent years, staffing changes have undermined Canada’s international policy and cooperation apparatus. Global Affairs Canada needs to hire staff who have knowledge and a deep understanding of international challenges and who, through practical experience, understand the critical importance of international cooperation. Leadership is also needed to strengthen collaboration with all relevant actors in Canadian society and to build more effective partnerships between Global Affairs Canada and domestic and international civil society.
Can Canada be a leader?
Not only must Canada restore its credibility in the field of international development, but the Trudeau government must also undertake a systematic review of its entire foreign policy. We can no longer rely solely on our privileged friendships with the United States, Europe and other traditional “allies”.
This review should be entrusted to eminent Canadians and international colleagues who can contribute their personal knowledge and understanding of what the future holds. Examples include Louise Arbour, Margaret Catley-Carlson, Huguette Labelle, Mark Carney, Simon Brault, Joe Clark, Lloyd Axworthy, Rajesh Tandon and Kumi Naidoo.
In the face of these numerous challenges, we strongly believe that Canadian and international civil society must put pressure on the Canadian government. We can have no international policy without strong public support. And no policy can succeed without coherence between what we advocate globally and what we do at home. We need to walk the talk.
We have much work to do, including at home. We need to stop preaching and providing endless excuses. Instead, we must engage in a genuine fight against poverty, inequality and racism. We need to commit to national reconciliation with First Nations, implement a more open and ambitious immigration policy, and ensure equality for women and girls. Meeting these domestic challenges will give Canada greater international credibility.
Canada participates in just about every international and multilateral forum. But we need to ask ourselves whether we simply want to be present – or whether we want to provide real leadership.
Canadian and international civil society, corporations and financial institutions must act to achieve common goals. The Canadian government must now demonstrate the ambition and courage to implement an open, transparent and non-partisan process of analysis and reflection to define Canada’s role in the world. We firmly believe that it would be sad and costly not to step up.
Mario Renaud and Robert Letendre are members of GREDIC, a group of former directors of international development organizations. This blog was published in French in La Presse on November 8, 2021. Image: Greg Rosenke.