by Rachel Aiello Ottawa News Bureau Online Producer @rachaiello Contact
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says that Canada is contributing $850 million to the global fight against COVID-19, a commitment he made Monday morning during a virtual global summit focused on raising funds for research and development of vaccines and treatments for the deadly respiratory virus.
He called the funding “a beginning,” and vowed “more to come” as the international community collaborates on tackling the novel coronavirus that’s rapidly spread across the world.
“In the fight against COVID-19, our first focus will always be here at home, but this is a global challenge. To keep Canadians safe and restart our economy, we need to defeat this virus not just within our borders, but wherever it is found. That’s how we’ll beat COVID-19 for good,” Trudeau said, speaking about this pledge during his address to Canadians outside Rideau Cottage.
“The more we co-operate, the more likely that we find a cure, and find it quickly. And that’s something we all want to see,” said the prime minister.
Joining the fundraising event, the prime minister highlighted that, to-date, the federal government has committed funding to various domestic research efforts that will contribute their findings to the global effort.
This has included funding to Canadian life sciences companies and to the World Health Organization’s treatment trials, as well as creating “strategies to tackle misinformation, stigma, and fear,” according to a government statement.
“When a storm comes, people tend to want to hunker down with their friends, with their families and wait till it blows over, but we cannot isolate ourselves, we cannot hope that everyone else does well while we take care of ourselves, we need to take care of ourselves and take care of the rest of the world as well. Take care of ourselves by taking care of the rest of the world. This is truly a moment for global leadership,” Trudeau said.