This year, Canada Day celebrations will look a little different. Instead of backyard barbecues, fireworks and festivals, many of us will be celebrating virtually. What hasn’t changed is that Canada Day is the time to reflect on our proudest moments and achievements as a nation and to mobilize around what kind of country we want to be in the future.
Here’s one legacy we can be proud of and one that’s more important than ever to continue: Canada’s leading role to ensure more women and children around the world have access to basic health care, clean water, nutritious food and a chance to thrive.
Every day, 15,000 children under five die, many from preventable causes such as pneumonia, diarrhea and malnutrition. Every two minutes, a woman dies from pregnancy or childbirth complications. Canadian volunteers from our own communities, along with doctors, nurses, midwives, government employees, humanitarians and many more, are working hard to make the world healthier and they need our support now more than ever.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made it clear to all of us that viruses and disease know no borders in this increasingly connected world. The best way Canadians can protect the health of Canadians is to advance the health and wellbeing of everyone, everywhere. Only a healthy world has a chance to fight this pandemic together.
