Canadian government makes unprecedented commitment to The Eliminate Project

Last month, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and philanthropist Bill Gates led a meeting in Ottawa, Canada. Kiwanis International President Dr. John Button and UNICEF Canada President and CEO David Morley participated in the discussion. The topic was the health of mothers and children in developing nations.

And it yielded a big result: the Canadian government will give to The Eliminate Project by matching every dollar (up to CAD$2.5 million) raised by UNICEF Canada and Kiwanis Canada. That’s essentially a CAD$5 million commitment over the next two years. This makes Canada the largest government donor to The Eliminate Project.

“Canada’s announcement is an unprecedented government commitment to join with Kiwanis and UNICEF to rid the world of maternal and neonatal tetanus,” says Button.

Canada's commitment will support UNICEF Canada and Kiwanis Canada as they work to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus in Chad, Kenya, Pakistan, Sudan and South Sudan. In fact, Morley says, it will save countless newborn babies.

“We're on the brink of eliminating this childhood killer,” he adds, “and this funding is a critical step in making elimination a reality for five countries.”

A result of 16 months of discussions, the commitment also brings us one big step closer to our ultimate goal: the elimination of MNT from the face of the Earth.

Read related articles:
http://pm.gc.ca/eng/news/2015/02/25/pm-meets-bill-gates-advance-maternal-newborn-and-child-health-priority
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2015/02/25/stephen-harper-announces-225m-to-boost-inoculation-programs-in-poorer-countries.html