Exclusive Interview with Marco Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Canada
“Immigrants create jobs and Essential for economic growth”
Posted on 04-16-2021, Read Time: 5 Min
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“The pandemic has had a significant impact on Canada’s economy, and immigration is crucial to addressing it. Immigration has got us through the pandemic – and will also help us get out of it. Canada’s short-term recovery and long-term prosperity rely on immigration: we need newcomers to help our economy bounce back after the pandemic, and address the stark demographic challenges we face with an aging population,” said Marco Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Canada. |
In an exclusive interaction with HR.com, Marco talks about the vital role immigrants play in the Canadian economy, how the country is planning to attract more skilled workers to Canada's tier II provinces and its future plan for welcoming immigrants.
Excerpts from an interview:
Excerpts from an interview:
Q: In 2021, Canada is aiming to welcome over 401,000 immigrants, in 2022 you are aiming at 411,000 and in 2023 you aim at 421,000 immigrants. These are the highest targets in the country's history and levels up to 1% of the country's population? Which are the sectors that have the most gap? What percentage of highly skilled immigrants are you looking for who can be part of the IT/tech sector?
Marco: Last fall, we were excited to present our plan to strengthen Canada through immigration, welcoming newcomers that drive economic growth and help build vibrant and diverse communities. The 2021-2023 immigration levels plan will increase our levels of immigration by a little over one percent of our population every year, for the next three years.
Our plan will help cement Canada’s place among the top destinations for talent, reunite families and maintain our position as the number one country in the world for refugee resettlement. Immigration speaks to who we were, who we are and who we hope to be - and we’re choosing to grow.
Immigration is essential to Canada’s economic growth, especially in important areas like the tech sector. Nearly half a million immigrants are currently working in various STEM fields. While immigrants represent 24% of Canada’s workforce, they account for 39% of computer programmers, 41% of engineers and more than 50% of all chemists.
Going forward, we will double down on successful policies that have helped our economy attract the world’s best, like the Start-Up Visa and Global Skills Strategy, which makes it easier for Canadian employers to attract the global talent they need. As we continue to tackle the pandemic and chart a course for our recovery, we look forward to welcoming newcomers in the science and tech sectors, as well as health care and other essential areas.
Q: How much has Covid-19 impacted Canada's economy? How important are immigrants to Canada in boosting its economy?
Marco: Immigration is an economic driver. One in three businesses with employees is owned by immigrants, creating tens of thousands of jobs, from construction to retail. The skills newcomers bring help our businesses thrive and create more jobs for Canadians. Immigration is vital to Canada’s economy, and recent studies have warned that a halt in immigration could cut economic growth by a third. “Immigration must be a pillar of Canada’s post-pandemic economic recovery plan,” says Goldy Hyer, president of the Business Council of Canada. We agree.
The pandemic has had a significant impact on Canada’s economy, and immigration is crucial to addressing it. Immigration has got us through the pandemic – and will also help us get out of it. Canada’s short-term recovery and long-term prosperity rely on immigration: we need newcomers to help our economy bounce back after the pandemic, and address the stark demographic challenges we face with an aging population.
The pandemic has had a significant impact on Canada’s economy, and immigration is crucial to addressing it. Immigration has got us through the pandemic – and will also help us get out of it. Canada’s short-term recovery and long-term prosperity rely on immigration: we need newcomers to help our economy bounce back after the pandemic, and address the stark demographic challenges we face with an aging population.
Q: How do you plan to allay the fear of Canadians in terms of losing jobs or opportunities to immigrants? How will you ensure that this does not turn into a situation similar to the U.S. in future?
Marco: Put simply: immigrants create jobs. That’s why we’ll continue welcoming the best and brightest from around the world, who have contributed so much throughout the pandemic and bring the skills our businesses need to thrive. There are more than 600,000 self-employed immigrants, and more than 260,000 of them have paid employees.
Canadians understand just how crucial immigration is to our country because immigrants are their friends, neighbors and colleagues. This is consistently reflected in Canadians high levels of support for immigration.
Canadians understand just how crucial immigration is to our country because immigrants are their friends, neighbors and colleagues. This is consistently reflected in Canadians high levels of support for immigration.
Q: What are your plans to promote DE&I at workplaces and in society?
Marco: As a multicultural society, Canadians believe that diversity is our strength. Our open and inclusive immigration system is central to this – meaning that we support diversity, equity and inclusion both across government and across the country.
Working together with Minister Bardish Chagger, Canada’s Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Youth, we’re proud to support many initiatives to foster diversity, equity and inclusion.
At IRCC, these efforts range from significant support for local groups that promote inclusion and multiculturalism across Canada to a two-year promotional campaign to highlight the benefits of immigration and the importance of welcoming communities. Across government, it includes analyzing government policies and programs using Gender-based Analysis Plus (with a focus on intersectionality,) increasing the hiring of diverse candidates, addressing systemic inequities in Canada’s criminal justice system, major efforts and investments to fight systemic racism and working with the private sector to increase gender equality, diversity and inclusion within Canadian companies, among many other efforts.
Working together with Minister Bardish Chagger, Canada’s Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Youth, we’re proud to support many initiatives to foster diversity, equity and inclusion.
At IRCC, these efforts range from significant support for local groups that promote inclusion and multiculturalism across Canada to a two-year promotional campaign to highlight the benefits of immigration and the importance of welcoming communities. Across government, it includes analyzing government policies and programs using Gender-based Analysis Plus (with a focus on intersectionality,) increasing the hiring of diverse candidates, addressing systemic inequities in Canada’s criminal justice system, major efforts and investments to fight systemic racism and working with the private sector to increase gender equality, diversity and inclusion within Canadian companies, among many other efforts.
Q: How important are gig workers for Canada? What are your plans for this segment in future?
Marco: Canadians have seen how important people in every area of our economy have been throughout the pandemic, and now more than ever we need all hands on deck. We’ve seen the contributions made by not only those working in our care homes and hospitals, but also those workers who have helped our farmers to put food on Canadians’ tables, along with a myriad of other essential workers who deserve our respect and support during these challenging times.
From the onset of the pandemic, we moved quickly to put protections in place to ensure Temporary Foreign Workers’ safety, and provided additional support and guidance to employers so they have the resources they need to protect their health and safety. As Prime Minister Trudeau has said, we need to reimagine our Temporary Foreign Worker program and how we can better protect workers – and considering new pathways to residency is part of that. That will include the recently launched Agri-Food Pilot that provides pathways to permanent residence for many workers already in Canada.
From the onset of the pandemic, we moved quickly to put protections in place to ensure Temporary Foreign Workers’ safety, and provided additional support and guidance to employers so they have the resources they need to protect their health and safety. As Prime Minister Trudeau has said, we need to reimagine our Temporary Foreign Worker program and how we can better protect workers – and considering new pathways to residency is part of that. That will include the recently launched Agri-Food Pilot that provides pathways to permanent residence for many workers already in Canada.
Q: Does the Government of Canada plan to boost IT/tech company proliferation into tier two provinces, in order to boost immigration into those areas?
Marco: Canada’s tech sector is booming thanks to immigration, and we strongly support its growth in communities large and small across the country. We’ve already recruited 43,000 high-tech workers under our successful global skill strategy, and have helped launch some 250 start-ups thanks to Canada Start-Up Visa program. Over the past few years, we’ve implemented several policies and programs to help more newcomers choose rural and remote regions of the country.
Most notably, the Atlantic Immigration Pilot has helped over 7,200 skilled newcomers settle in the four Atlantic provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador and Prince Edward Island) since 2017. The AIP is helping employers attract the talent they need, particularly in technical occupations and skilled trades.
Most importantly, over 90% of newcomers are still living in Atlantic Canada after their first year, a much higher “retention rate” than other programs. Similar new programs include the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot, and the Municipal Nominee Program, which are also showing early signs of success and encouraging newcomers to put down roots in communities right across the country. These pilots are helping to ensure Canada gets the workers we need, where we need them.
Most notably, the Atlantic Immigration Pilot has helped over 7,200 skilled newcomers settle in the four Atlantic provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador and Prince Edward Island) since 2017. The AIP is helping employers attract the talent they need, particularly in technical occupations and skilled trades.
Most importantly, over 90% of newcomers are still living in Atlantic Canada after their first year, a much higher “retention rate” than other programs. Similar new programs include the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot, and the Municipal Nominee Program, which are also showing early signs of success and encouraging newcomers to put down roots in communities right across the country. These pilots are helping to ensure Canada gets the workers we need, where we need them.
Q: Canada has launched online citizen applications, however, there aren't many who have applied through the virtual platform as against the total immigrant numbers that you are targeting at. Why? What have been your challenges in terms of digital transformation? What are your plans to solve this issue?
Marco: The pandemic has rapidly accelerated changes that we’d begun to make over the past few years. It’s helping us move our paper-based regime of applications and files towards a modernized immigration system, with digital tools and processes that better serve both IRCC and all those who hope to come here.
This new immigration system will be better equipped to capitalize on Canada’s many competitive advantages, better suited to address global shifts and better positioned to attract top talent. Our vision is an immigration system that, one day, will be completely digital.
IRCC has also enabled certain categories of applications to be processed virtually – and as a result, we’ve been able to improve processing rates in many categories over the past few months. As Canadians have adapted to the new reality, so have we: we’re beginning to hold asylum interviews remotely, have welcomed nearly 50,000 new Canadians at virtual citizenship ceremonies, and recently became the first country in the world to offer citizenship testing online. We look forward to building on this progress in the months to come.
This new immigration system will be better equipped to capitalize on Canada’s many competitive advantages, better suited to address global shifts and better positioned to attract top talent. Our vision is an immigration system that, one day, will be completely digital.
IRCC has also enabled certain categories of applications to be processed virtually – and as a result, we’ve been able to improve processing rates in many categories over the past few months. As Canadians have adapted to the new reality, so have we: we’re beginning to hold asylum interviews remotely, have welcomed nearly 50,000 new Canadians at virtual citizenship ceremonies, and recently became the first country in the world to offer citizenship testing online. We look forward to building on this progress in the months to come.
Q: How do you plan to solve the long waiting period (almost a year or 2) for those who have applied for PR to get a visa?
Marco: Global migration has been upended by the pandemic. From widespread travel restrictions to constraints on our settlement partners to employees working remotely, it has had a significant impact on Canada’s immigration system. Yet we’ve taken quick action and come a long way since the onset of the pandemic – providing additional resources where they are needed most, streamlining our processes and ramping systems back up.
In the face of great challenges, we’re rapidly adapting, innovating and evolving to best serve Canadians and those who wish to come here. One of the very first things we did was implement priority processing for those who need it most, and we’re processing those as quickly as possible.
We’ve improved technology and digitized more of our operations, and increased the amount of processing happening virtually. This includes our permanent resident landings process, which has now actually reduced the amount of time it takes to land a permanent resident compared to the pre-pandemic process. We have also resumed our in-person services for collection of biometric information and other required procedures.
Thanks to these new measures and additional resources, progress is being made every week. As of February 19, 2021, IRCC welcomed more permanent residents for this year than for the same period in 2020, before the pandemic. We will continue to build on this progress going forward.
In the face of great challenges, we’re rapidly adapting, innovating and evolving to best serve Canadians and those who wish to come here. One of the very first things we did was implement priority processing for those who need it most, and we’re processing those as quickly as possible.
We’ve improved technology and digitized more of our operations, and increased the amount of processing happening virtually. This includes our permanent resident landings process, which has now actually reduced the amount of time it takes to land a permanent resident compared to the pre-pandemic process. We have also resumed our in-person services for collection of biometric information and other required procedures.
Thanks to these new measures and additional resources, progress is being made every week. As of February 19, 2021, IRCC welcomed more permanent residents for this year than for the same period in 2020, before the pandemic. We will continue to build on this progress going forward.
Q: How much did Covid-19 disrupt immigration into Canada in 2020? How many immigrants came to Canada in 2020, as against the actual numbers announced at the beginning of the same year?
Marco: While the pandemic had a significant impact on immigration to Canada, and in spite of incredible challenges to migration across the world, we’re proud to have welcomed 187,000 immigrants in 2020.
Q: What are your future plans?
Marco: As we begin our economic recovery, we’re going to continue to welcome those who are willing to put their shoulder to the wheel. That’s why we’re delivering on our immigration levels plan, and we’re sprinting out of the gate.
In January 2021, we welcomed more new permanent residents than in January 2020, when there was no pandemic. In February, we delivered the largest draw in the history of our Express Entry system, which extended invitations for permanent residency to over 27,000 people who are already hard at work in Canada and contributing to our economy.
But we aren’t stopping there. We're seizing the opportunity to engage the immigrants who are already here – like international students, asylum seekers and temporary workers. That’s the focus of our plan and we are going to continue delivering on it. We’re already ahead of schedule, welcoming new permanent residents at a rate much higher than our projections.
In January 2021, we welcomed more new permanent residents than in January 2020, when there was no pandemic. In February, we delivered the largest draw in the history of our Express Entry system, which extended invitations for permanent residency to over 27,000 people who are already hard at work in Canada and contributing to our economy.
But we aren’t stopping there. We're seizing the opportunity to engage the immigrants who are already here – like international students, asylum seekers and temporary workers. That’s the focus of our plan and we are going to continue delivering on it. We’re already ahead of schedule, welcoming new permanent residents at a rate much higher than our projections.
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