MaRS responds to the Government of Canada’s commitment to create a Canadian Development Finance Initiative

MaRS applauds the Government of Canada’s commitment to create a Canadian Development Finance Initiative (DFI). DFIs can be powerful drivers of poverty reduction. A Canadian DFI would expand access to capital for Canadian, international and local ventures with the potential to create jobs, drive economic development, increase tax revenue and improve social outcomes in low and middle-income countries.
 
This commitment positions Canada to address a critical financing gap in low and middle-income countries and to extend additional support to some of the world’s poorest populations. It carries the added benefit of improving access to emerging markets for Canadian ventures, and of generating a profit that could be reinvested for further impact.
 
We commend Minister Paradis for his leadership in championing innovative development financing tools and in particular for the creation of a DFI.