Mia MacKechnie and Oliver Boucher present their Global Policy Project (GP2)
On September 13, 2023, Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs Program (MPPGA) alumni Mia MacKechnie and Oliver Boucher presented their Global Policy Project (GP2) with the Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) to the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).
The project is a signature component of the MPPGA program where students have the opportunity to apply the knowledge they gained during their first year to address real-world policy challenges. Earlier this summer, the CABC informed the MPPGA project team that they had been drawing on their GP2 report as part of their meetings with AAFC and CFIA.
The project team’s report posits that, despite being the fifth largest exporter of agriculture and agri-food goods worldwide and a global leader in safe, high-quality products, Canada’s trade with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) underperforms relative to its potential. To overcome this challenge, the report proposes six areas of engagement for government, industry, and other partners to pursue under the framework of a Food Security Partnership.
The CABC report caught the attention of AAFC and CFIA representatives who then expressed interest in having MPPGA alumni present their research to a larger internal government audience at AAFC, CFIA and Global Affairs Canada (GAC), to raise awareness of the study. Kathleen Donohue, Assistant Deputy Minister and Vice President, International Affairs Branch at AAFC and CFIA gave the opening remarks and nearly 150 people attended.
The presentation was timely given Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, where he attended the 43rd ASEAN Summit and announced the launch of the ASEAN-Canada Strategic Partnership. Canada and ASEAN also released a joint statement about strengthening food security and committed to enhancing collaboration in this area.
MacKechnie and Boucher are grateful for the opportunity to share their analysis with an audience of policymakers and look forward to seeing how initiatives such as the AAFC and CFIA office in Manila, Philippines will take shape over the coming months.
Both MacKechnie and Boucher shared that their MPPGA GP2 project helped them build a variety of skills, from policy analysis and client engagement to project management, all of which are foundational for careers in policy.
