Canada’s leadership through the Muskoka Initiative for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health and has provided UNICEF with $300 million in funding since 2010 in support of ending the preventable deaths of children and strengthening national health systems to reach all children. In May 2014 the Government of Canada renewed its global commitment to maternal, newborn and child health – Canada’s top development priority.

An example of this support is the $19.9 million in funding that Canada contributed to UNICEF’s maternal newborn and child health program in Bangladesh. The project aims to improve the health of mothers and children under five in order to improve children’s grown and survival in 14 poor districts in Bangladesh. This includes addressing shortages and bottlenecks in the public health care system, responding to communication issues, training health service providers and expanding cold storage to accommodate the instruction of new vaccines. This four year project is expected to benefit over 1.5 million women and 5.8 million young children in Bangladesh.

To read more about DFATD supported projects, visit DFATD’s International Development Project Browser.