By Saskatchewan Council for International Cooperation

SCIC Celebrates Funding for Public Engagement in International Cooperation!

Feb 14, 2023 | 8:54 AM

At an event celebrating International Development Week, the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of
International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of
Canada announced $23.4 million in funding to extend programming for Canadian public engagement.

Of this, $17.4 million will be provided to the Inter-Council Network for the extension of its Inspiring
Action for Global Citizenship program.

The Inter-Council Network (ICN) is a coalition of the eight Provincial and Regional Councils for
International Cooperation (including the Saskatchewan Council for International Cooperation – SCIC),
committed to global social justice and social change, representing more than 350 diverse civil society
organizations from coast to coast to coast.

The ICN works with diverse national, regional, and local organizations, and provides a national forum in which the eight councils collaborate for improved effectiveness and identify common priorities for collective action.

The Inspiring Action for Global Citizenship program was initially launched in 2019 and has engaged
numerous Canadians and organizations across the country in international cooperation and the
sustainable development goals.

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The program, implemented by each council in its region, specializes in and has found success engaging the public through capacity building and youth leadership programs, curriculum development, and virtual and in-person public engagement on gender equality, human rights, and global citizenship. The ICN has a collective reach of more than 4 million per year and involves 32,000+ participants in its programs annually.

At the Cooperation Canada Awards ceremony, while announcing the funding, the Honorable Minister
Sajjan said, “By raising awareness and promoting action, the Inspiring Action for Global Citizenship
program and the International Development Education and Awareness project will have powerful
ripple effects.

The more Canadians understand about international development and the more ways they find to get involved, the richer our work and our communities will be.” SCIC is situated on the territories of the nêhiyawak, Anihšināpēk, Dakota, Lakota, and Nakoda, and the homeland of the Métis/Michif Nation | 2138 McIntyre Street, Regina, SK, S4P 2R7 | www.saskcic.org | @saskcic.org | 306.757.4669

Zehra Rizvi, Executive Director of the Saskatchewan Council for International Cooperation, says, “We
are proud of the work accomplished under the Inspiring Action for Global Citizenship program in
engaging the people of Saskatchewan in global issues. With this extended funding, we will continue to
inform, inspire, and involve emerging youth leaders, changemakers and our member organizations in
Saskatchewan. We would also like to congratulate the Aga Khan Foundation Canada for the funds they
have received to implement their project. Having worked with youth of different ages across the
province, we see first-hand the deep impact projects engaging youth have on creating young
changemakers.”

The Aga Khan Foundation received $6 million for their International Development Education and
Awareness Project focusing on school youth programs focusing on sparking young Canadian interests
in eliminating poverty and promoting gender equality.

The announcement for the $23.4 million funding came as across Canada, members of the Inter-Council Network celebrate International Development Week – a week dedicated to highlighting and acknowledging the contributions Canadians make in building better communities around the world.