WE Charity says it is closing its Canadian operations.

Co-founders Craig and Marc Kielburger are also planning to leave the Toronto-based youth organization once the transition to a new board of governors is complete.

The brothers are blaming the COVID-19 pandemic and the controversy surrounding the Liberal government’s plans to have the Toronto-based youth organization run a multimillion-dollar student-volunteer program.

The organization has lost many of its corporate sponsors over the past few months, which the Kielburgers say has left it in dire financial straits.

WE plans to lay off its Canadian staff in the coming months and sell all its property in Canada, including its Toronto headquarters, to create an endowment fund that will pay for the completion of several projects that are still underway.