Canadian International Development Agency

The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) is Canada’s lead agency for development assistance. Its aim is to reduce poverty, promote human rights, and support sustainable development. CIDA was established in 1968 to administer the bulk of Canada’s official development assistance program. CIDA works in concert with its development partners, fragile states and countries in crisis, selected countries and regions, and the Canadian population and institutions. The measure of its success lies in its contribution to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and Canada’s broader international policy objectives.

CIDA has made progress, as follows:

• Worldwide, since 1990, the proportion of people living in extreme poverty fell from nearly one third to 19 percent;
• Progress has been made in getting more children into school in the developing world; and
• Child mortality has declined globally, and it is becoming clear that the right lifesaving interventions are proving effective.