Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird and Andrew Bennett, Canada's ambassador for religious freedom, are announcing $1.2 million for projects to promote tolerance for religions around the world.
Bennett was appointed as religious freedom ambassador earlier this year.
CBCNews.ca is carrying Baird and Bennett's press conference live at 11:15 a.m. ET.
The office, which is modelled on a similar department in the U.S., aims to protect and advocate on behalf of religious minorities under threat, and oppose hatred and intolerance for religion, according to the website of the Department of Foreign Affairs.
The government will provide:
- $553,643 over two years for the promotion of "intercommunity dialogue and conflict mediation" in Jos, Nigeria, and other parts of Nigeria’s Plateau State.
- $672,000 over three years for national training events for government officials and civil society actors in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and South Caucasus, funding for up to 10 small-scale projects seeking ways to address violations of freedom of religion or belief at the national level, and the launch of guidelines on the recognition of belief communities.
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