As I travel about the District, I am struck by how Canada’s immigration policy is impacting our communities. Over the past several decades, the District’s population has been in decline throughout migration. More recently, we are now seeing a new migration as people from around the world who have chosen to make Canada their home are also choosing to live and raise families in the Rainy River District.
Canada’s immigration policy is having a positive impact by filling job vacancies locally. Canada welcomed 437,180 permanent residents and 607,182 nonpermanent residents this past year. It is the first for our nation to reach a goal far higher than ever before. And those new residents are spreading out across the country. Canada’s aim is to attract 1.2 million permanent residents by 2025 and continue to grow the population at the rate of 500,000 new residents after annually.
In our District, we are seeing foreign-trained nurses working in our hospitals.
Many of our restaurants are now owned and operated by newcomers to the District. Others have found employment in our retail stores, construction companies and other businesses. Canada is often the first choice for refugees fleeing armed conflict, famine, and religious or political persecution. This past year we have welcomed thousands from Afghanistan and Ukraine.
Our aging population and low unemployment make immigration necessary to grow our economy.
In previous decades, we welcomed refugees from the Hungarian revolution in 1956 and from Vietnam in the early 1970s. The District has always been a welcoming place. Immigration counts for almost 100 per cent of job growth.
It is expected that Canada’s population will reach one hundred million by the next century. Already we are making it easier for foreign students to get permanent resident status in Canada. It is one step to attract and grow our population.
For those businesses facing difficulty in attracting new employees, the District should be putting on seminars showing those businesses how to attract these new immigrants to their businesses.
Councils should be meeting with new immigrants to discover what has attracted them to the Rainy River District, what would attract families and others from their countries here. We must learn what would make their transition to living in the District easier. We must plan for housing growth to accommodate these new Canadian residents.
Our new residents can help develop the plan.
From the Publisher’s Pen
Jim Cumming
Former Publisher
Fort Frances Times.
