It's a kind of blended financing. As a representative of the Canadian government, I am chair of the the redesigning development finance initiative, which is a very good initiative led by WEF and OECD. The Gates Foundation is there. The U.S. and Sweden are involved, with Abraaj Funds, the Rockefeller Foundation, the World Bank, IFC, and others. The idea is to see how we can attract interest in blending public and private money to make sure we can address the gaps.

We know that to put in place the best strategy to resolve health issues, there is a gap of $30 billion U.S. a year. When we talk about the infrastructure per se, the gap is $1.5 trillion U.S. a year according to World Bank estimates. You cannot achieve that with ODA alone. On the private side, sometimes things need to be better connected in order to connect the dots, if I can put it that way. So if we can establish a common lexicon and we can attract deals and get more people to contribute in order to make sure that we do accomplish this. As Charlotte Petri Gornitzka, the director from the Swedish development agency, said, we're ready to coinvest where we can find mutual interest. The ODA is there. The goal of the Canadian Government is to eradicate poverty. We want to ensure good development, and sometimes that can connect with projects from the private sector. The idea is not to subsidize but just to define for the committee the common interests, the impacts, the benefits, and so on.

Your last point was on la Francophonie.

I think La Francophonie is a very important and relevant vehicle. The legacy Abdou Diouf has left us with today is a modern, credible and transparent vehicle. When coups d'état happened in Mali and Madagascar, the countries were suspended from the organization. That puts a stigma on them, attaches a moral weight to the events that occurred. At this stage, what can be done to propel La Francophonie further into the 21st century?

Discussions are under way with countries in West Africa, like Senegal, which has some very positive economic development standards in place. Another country of focus is Benin, where the president has led a relentless campaign against corruption. What can we do to help these countries in terms of economic strategy? How can we develop that economic block? That is what was interesting about the Dakar summit.

Michaëlle Jean was named Secretary General. She presented an economic strategy and put forward a credible and realistic plan to implement that strategy. We are very excited about that. And that's why our department is looking at how it can align its programs in a way that would help those countries' economies grow.

Again, I would say that Canadians have an excellent reputation. The Africans want to do business with us because we are respected. We're talking about sustainable development and benefits to communities. It's well-known. There's a lot of potential there.

Yes, the Government of Canada, as well as the Government of New Brunswick and the government of Quebec are part of the solution. But it involves all Canadians. La Francophonie is not just something for francophones, but also a Canadian symbol. Canada is a member of La Francophonie, and we must seize the development opportunities it presents.

Christian Paradis