THE INTERNATIONAL AFRICAN CANADIAN YOUTH CONVENTION

During the 1990s, Canadian involvement in African dropped as the result of government cutbacks to the aid and foreign affairs budgets. This was largely reversed during the government of Paul Phillipe Edgar Martin in 2003 to 2006 whose government announced several new commitments to Africa. During this period, Canada grew to become the 3rd largest foreign donor in Africa, with numerous humanitarian development projects spanning many countries. The majority of these projects were administered by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), with funding provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. However, relations deteriorated under the government of Stephen Harper, which is cited as one of the reasons Canada failed to win a seat on the UN Security Council in 2010. That same year the Canadian government also suspended all aid to Africa, a sharp shift from its position as a key humanitarian donor and development partner in Africa.

In the recent past, there have been numerous calls to the current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau by Canadian and African youths to increase Official Development Aid (ODA) which is designed to promote the economic development and welfare of developing countries so as to bring Canada back to its glory in terms of international involvement and diplomacy. Funding the African Canadian Youth Convention through the Afro Canada Development Foundation (ACDF) is one of the initiatives that will boost Canada’s commitment towards increasing ODA and bringing Canada back to its greatness while securing a bright future for young Africans and African Canadians.

Objectives of the Convention

Main Objective

The major and main objective of the convention is to bring together African youths between the age of 13 to 34 years from Africa, Canada and elsewhere in the diaspora to exchange views, share experiences on different issues, detect common preoccupations and develop realistic action plans to build and rebuild communities that meet the needs and aspirations of the young people on the African continent and elsewhere in the world

Other Objectives

1. To bolster human capital investment amongst the African young populace by equipping them with a set of skills on different development aspects, connect them to a network of international funders to partner with as well as invest in their innovative ideas, and gain international experience while learning from each other.

2. To enable Canada to tap into Africa’s emerging talented human resources giving her leverage for future competitiveness in terms of trade and business exchange (investment) on the African continent since Africa is the new emerging biggest global market and hub of endless opportunities due to its untapped mineral resources. Africa is an emerging market and offers Canada a chance to achieve growth and high returns from its investments.

3. To support young African leaders, professionals, entrepreneurs, innovators and emerging talents in art, music, dance and drama they spur growth and prosperity while exploring invaluable opportunities in Canada and beyond for mutual growth and development.

Host or Publisher AFRO CANADIAN DEVELOPMENT FOUNDATION