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 Ms. Libby Davies (Vancouver East, NDP): Mr. Speaker, the World Health Organization has identified five solutions needed to save more lives, including access to safe abortion services.

    Experts say that unsafe abortion is the most easily preventable and treatable cause of maternal death.

    Will Canada ensure that the next phase of the maternal health initiative is based on sound scientific evidence and not ideology? Will it include reducing the number of unsafe abortions that is putting women’s lives at risk around the world?

    Hon. Christian Paradis (Minister of International Development and Minister for La Francophonie, CPC): Mr. Speaker, each Canadian can be proud because we reached a lot of good results. If I go, doubly over 700,000 more children lived to their fifth birthday in 2011 than in 2010; in over 125 countries, maternal death rates have declined sharply in the past five years; between 2010 and 2013, an estimated two million deaths from disease have been prevented and five million children have been treated by vitamin A; thousands of women have received antenatal care.

    We can be proud of this and under the leadership of the Prime Minister, we will keep on track on this.