'The worst time to go backwards': International aid groups fear cuts as budget looms

Canada's aid sector is nervously awaiting this spring's federal budget amid fears of funding cuts that could require projects abroad to shut down.

Canada's aid sector is nervously awaiting this spring's federal budget amid fears of funding cuts that could require projects abroad to shut down.

"This lack of predictability is creating anxiety in the sector," said Louis Belanger, whose group Bigger Than Our Borders advocates on behalf of major Canadian charities.

"The future is uncertain for a lot of organizations that are working in developing countries, because there's a lack of clarity and a lack of transparency."

Since taking office in 2015, the Liberals have pledged to keep increasing development spending each year -- but emerging crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have significantly altered the focus of that spending.

Before the pandemic, the Liberals had earmarked an annual $6.6 billion in foreign aid. After the arrival of COVID-19, they boosted the target to more than $8 billion, first for programs related to fighting the virus and then to help Ukraine and its neighbours.

In late 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was still instructing International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan to "increase Canada's international development assistance every year."

And since then, Trudeau has announced large funding allocations related to a UN biodiversity summit, a new Indo-Pacific strategy and the Global Fund, which tackles diseases such as AIDS.