BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (June 27, 2024) – The High Commission of Canada is pleased to announce the contribution of CAN$101,000 to three non-governmental organizations in the Commonwealth of Dominica through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI). Following an open call for proposals, the Canadian High Commission selected Lifeline Ministries Inc., Kibe’Kuati Inc., and the Dominica Olympic Committee as three of its nine Eastern Caribbean CFLI projects for 2024-2025.
Building on the success of last year’s initiatives, Canada is providing additional support to Lifeline Ministries Inc. and Kibe’Kuati Inc. to expand their 2023 CFLI pilot projects. Lifeline Ministries Inc. will receive a CAN$30,000 CFLI contribution for phase two of its ‘Lifeline Safe Refuge Project’ offering safe accommodation and survivor-centered support services to those who have experienced sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). The new funding will also support intake services for a local SGBV helpline which is being established by the NGO with the backing of the Bureau of Gender Affairs and the Maria Holder Memorial Trust.
Kibe’Kuati Inc. will receive a further CAN$36,000 in CFLI funding to implement an education and rehabilitation program for SGBV survivors in the Kalinago Territory. Project beneficiaries will receive academic guidance in targeted CXC subjects, vocational training, childcare support, parenting classes and SGBV counselling, which will also be offered to perpetrators as they deepen their understanding of sexual and gender-based violence and maintaining healthy relationships.
High Commissioner of Canada H.E. Lilian Chatterjee shared, “We are pleased to continue our partnerships with Lifeline Ministries Inc. and Kibe’Kuati Inc. whose 2023 projects exemplified innovative and community-based approaches to address sexual and gender-based violence. These organizations are providing critical support to their communities, to Dominica’s social services sector and to the country at-large. We applaud their steadfast commitment to end SGBV and build a safer Dominica.”
Canada is also providing CAN$35,000 to the Dominica Olympic Committee to support their ‘Rising Tides: Essential Skills for Empowering Coastal Communities’ project. Focused on particularly marginalized groups, including young women, at-risk youth, and persons with disabilities in Soufriere and the surrounding areas, the initiative will offer aquatic safety training, water-based activities, and marine education to reduce water-related accidents, protect marine ecosystems, and increase environmental stewardship in Dominica.
High Commissioner Chatterjee continued, “This is our first CFLI partnership with the Dominica Olympic Committee. The youth-driven project advances several priority areas for Canada in the Eastern Caribbean, including advancing the empowerment of women and girls and prioritizing diversity and inclusion in taking climate action. We eagerly look forward to the positive impact this project will have on Dominica’s coastal communities.”
The Canada Fund for Local Initiatives is a program designed to support small-scale, high-impact projects in developing countries that align with the Government of Canada’s thematic priority areas for engagement. The High Commission of Canada received proposals from civil society organizations across four eligible countries in the Eastern Caribbean, administering CAN$300,000 in available funding. Other successful 2024-2025 CFLI project partners include the Grenada Community Development Agency and GrenCHAP Inc. in Grenada, the Do-Nation Foundation Inc. in Saint Lucia, and the St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Association of Music Professionals, the SeaMoss Association of SVG, and Voice of the Disabled Inc. in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
