Conservative funding policy jeopardizing organization

Form left to right: Miguel Degiovanni (member de SLAM), François Lapierre (Constituency assistant of  M.Morin), Marc-André Morin (MP of Laurentides-Labelle), Marcel Gosselin (president of SLAM), Pierre Dionne Labelle (MP of Rivière-du-Nord), et Sylvie Gendron (Coordinator of SLAM). 

MPs Pierre Dionne Labelle (Rivière-du-Nord) and Marc-André Morin (Laurentides-Labelle) expressed their support for Solidarité Laurentides Amérique centrale (SLAM), which is opposing the Conservatives’ new funding policy for international cooperation projects.

SLAM has been active over the last 15 years in several projects involving numerous small farming communities in Guatemala. These projects met a variety of basic needs (safe drinking water, installation of latrines and medical centres, training for health workers and midwives, etc.). The projects also sought to reactivate the local economy (livestock projects, coffee plantations, etc.). All of them included training to promote the ownership of these populations of their own development.

But these projects will no longer be possible with the Conservatives’ new competitive funding policy. Now, the majority of projects can no longer come from the initiative of international cooperation organizations like SLAM and their local partners. The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) will launch calls for tenders from now on, rather than accepting projects initiated by cooperative organizations.

Pierre Dionne Labelle says the Conservative policy disqualifies SLAM because the organization doesn’t have the resources to compete with larger organizations, like World Vision. “Despite all its expertise, SLAM is relegated to the level of simple subcontractor and its existence is jeopardized,” said MP Marc-André Morin . New Democrat MPs will call on the government in the House of Commons to re-establish partnerships with organizations like SLAM.