Canada is a country that values the role of immigrants in the growth of its economy. As the Canadian economy is suffering from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, the country looks forward to sourcing international talents to support its economic recovery. It is exploring various ways through which it can attract, retain and put to use international talents during the post-pandemic period. In November, IRCC said it planned to attract some 1,233,000 new permanent residents to the country between 2021 and 2023.
A white paper released recently by the Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) said, “Safely reopening our borders to international talent will play a critical role in tackling skills gaps in many sectors and meeting the labour needs of Canadian employers.” The paper further observed that the pandemic has “compounded” problems with “an ageing population creating labour shortages that need to be addressed through immigration”.
Canada is exploring means through which those residing temporarily in the country as students and temporary residents can be made permanent residents. Canada’s Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino said that by allowing temporary residents to become permanent, the country’s short-term needs to respond to Covid-19 and longer-term demographic challenges – mainly around its ageing population – could be addressed. He was quoted by Bloomberg as saying, “For those who are already in Canada and here on a temporary basis, it behooves us to see whether or not there’s a way to accelerate their pathway to becoming Canadian.”
The CiCan’s white paper has urged the colleges and institutes in Canada to train international students as well as new immigrants who can transition to work in the country so that they can fill the shortage of labour the country is facing. “Given the global nature of this pandemic, which has interrupted international travel, ensuring Canada continues to attract the international students who will become such an important part of our future workforce will be equally important,” the paper reads. The white paper said the Canadian institutions of higher education can meet the evolving labour requirements of employers by “attracting international students to Canada and helping them transition to the labour market and citizenship”.
Earlier, Mendicino had said, “International students who tend to be a younger population, who tend to be right at the outset of their careers having a longer period within their lifespan to contribute and they are a very attractive pool that we’re going to look very closely at.”
If you are planning to migrate to Canada, this is the right time to start the preparations. Talk to the expert Canada immigration consultants of CanApprove to explore your options to move to the country permanently.
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