LETTER: Canada needs to revisit its spending priorities

LETTER: Canada needs to revisit its spending priorities

Published 7:30 am Saturday, June 6, 2026

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As a White Rock resident and intern with The Borgen Project, I have been following recent discussions about Canada’s spending priorities with growing concern.

This year, the federal government announced major increases in defence spending to meet NATO commitments, while international assistance faces planned reductions in the years ahead. At a time when Canada is finding billions of dollars for security and defence, we should also ask what role we want to play in addressing global poverty, humanitarian crises and international development.

The timing could not be more significant. According to newly released OECD data, global Official Development Assistance fell by 23.1 per cent in 2025. Meanwhile, Canada’s aid spending represented just 0.34 per cent of Gross National Income in 2024, less than half of the long-standing United Nations target of 0.70 per cent.

Through my internship with The Borgen Project, I have learned that poverty is not simply the result of individual circumstances. Government policies and funding decisions shape whether communities have access to education, healthcare, food security and economic opportunities. Official Development Assistance helps support these goals while promoting global stability and reducing the conditions that contribute to conflict, displacement and humanitarian emergencies.

Canada has long viewed itself as a compassionate country and a constructive partner on the world stage. Those values should not disappear when budgets become difficult. National security is important, but true global security also requires investment in development, poverty reduction and international cooperation.

As Canadians debate where public dollars should be spent, I hope we remember that the world’s most vulnerable communities are affected by these decisions too.