Bringing Accountability and Transparency to Export Development Canada’s Practice

(Above Ground, Ottawa, 12 November 2018) Canada’s Export Development Act is under review. In our submission (pdf) to the government, Above Ground and other Canadian civil society groups call for legal reforms to bolster the accountability and transparency of Export Development Canada (EDC). EDC’s policies state that it screens and monitors the business it supports for associated social, environmental and business ethics risks. Yet over the years we have identified multiple companies that receive support from EDC despite credible or proven allegations involving environmental damage, corruption and human rights violations. In this submission we urge Parliament to adopt legislative reforms that include prohibiting EDC from supporting firms involved in wrongdoing, subjecting it to judicial oversight and expanding the Auditor General’s mandate regarding EDC. We have also made a second submission (pdf) calling for reforms to address the climate impacts of business supported by EDC. In addition, Both ENDS and other CSOs working from a number of countries made a joint submission as formal input to the EDC legislative review regarding EDC support for fossil fuels. The submission emphasized the Canadian governments' ambition to show leadership on climate change and to prioritise climate change action and clean economic growth.

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