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World leaders will be meeting next week at the G-20 conference in London, England to discuss how keep the crisis from getting worse.
We need to make sure that they don't just bail out banks and large companies, but that they also address the plight of the world's poorest.
While the impact of the financial crisis on rich countries has been severe, it has the potential to be absolutely devastating to the poorest people living in the poorest countries. An estimated 40 million people have been pushed back into grinding poverty by the crisis.
Prime Minister Harper will be meeting with leaders from around the world on April 2nd, in an extraordinary conference called to address the global financial crisis. Leaders from the countries with the twenty largest economies will meet, at the G-20 (short for 'Group of 20 Nations') The talk will be about stimulus packages, bank bailouts and how to make sure the financial system doesn't fail us again.
The desperate condition of the world's poorest has to be addressed. Last year the world's poorest faced rapidly rising fuel and energy prices, pushing many people back into absolute poverty, measured as living on less than two dollars a day. Now the financial crisis has spread around the world, meaning governments and people have less money to cover the basics of food, water, shelter and basic education.
That's why we are calling on Prime Minister Harper to show leadership at the G-20 meeting, and address the dire situation of the world's poorest. We have drafted a letter, signed by several Canadian organizations, and we are asking you to add your voice by signing on as well.
Briefly, we are asking Prime Minister Harper to commit Canada to reducing global poverty and inequality, working for decent jobs and public services for all in the poorest nations, using stimulus packages to build a global Green Economy and tackle climate change and a push to democratize the governance of the global economy. You can read the letter - and sign on - here.