Immigration growing in Nova Scotia

ANDREA GUNN OTTAWA BUREAU 
Published October 27, 2017 - 7:55pm
Last Updated October 27, 2017 - 7:55pm

Nova Scotia’s immigrant population is diverse and swiftly growing, according to new data.

Nationwide immigration numbers collected from the 2016 census and released Wednesday shows the number of landed immigrants and permanent residents in Nova Scotia is now at 55,675, or 6.1 per cent of the overall population.

While this is lower than other provinces and the national rate of 22 per cent, the number of newcomers to Nova Scotia is growing. From 2011 to 2016, Nova Scotia saw a 15 per cent jump in immigration, which was fuelled in part by Syrian refugees who have settled in the province. More than 20 per cent of Nova Scotia’s immigrant population landed in the last five years.

So where are these newcomers coming from? The Statistics Canada data shows that the majority of recent immigrants (from 2011 to 2016) came to Nova Scotia from the Philippines (12.7 per cent), the United Kingdom (9.2 per cent), and China (8.4 per cent). In that five-year period, 885, or 7.5 per cent, of the immigrants came from Syria.

Elizabeth Eustaquio-Domondon, the Philippines’ honorary vice-consul in Halifax, says Filipinos immigrate to Nova Scotia and Canada for the same reasons she came here in 1999: family and opportunity.

“When I was living in the Philippines I would hear good words about how good Canada is (and) how good Canadian people are,” she said.

Eustaquio-Domondon said news of economic opportunities travels by word of mouth through family and friends, and often entire families will immigrate together. The vibrant Filipino community in Nova Scotia — which includes a number or organizations and groups aimed at keeping the culture alive in Canada — as well as the existence of organizations like the Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia that help newcomers settle, are major draws.

Eustaquio-Domondon said a significant number of Filipino immigrants work in the health-care field, many as nurses. She said newcomers often work as an in-home caregivers while they achieve their licence requirements to practise in Canada.

Gerry Mills, executive director of ISANS, called the increase in immigration exciting.

“I think the Ivany Report woke up a lot of Nova Scotians to the fact that we actually need to do something about the the demographic issue and immigrants are a huge part of the solution, so bringing in immigrants for the workforce and for community development has really been a huge benefit to the economy,” she said.

Mills’ organization helps immigrants with employment support services, language services, and community integration, while also supporting employers and communities to better welcome immigrants.

ISANS also helps newcomers with opening businesses through support services and connecting them with funding partners.

ISANS helped to open 109 new businesses with immigrants last year. That’s a huge increase; three years ago it was in the teens,” Mills said. “Those are businesses that are paying taxes, hiring immigrants, they’re contributing to the economy.”

The census data shows that more than 60 per cent of recent immigrants to Nova Scotia were economic immigrants — skilled workers or businesspeople — and the majority of those were provincial nominees. In other provinces, nominees make up a smaller portion of the immigration population.

In line with key recommendations in the 2014 Ivany report, the Nova Scotia government has lobbied Ottawa for an increase in its provincially sponsored immigrant quota to help alleviate population decline and stimulate economic growth.

In 2015, Nova Scotia was able to get its cap increased from 700 to 1,050 and was later given a one-time top-up to 1,350 when it had filled its quota by mid-year. In March 2016 the province negotiated to increase the number of economic immigrants the province can nominate for permanent residency from 1,050 to 1,350.

Ottawa also launched the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project in March, which will bring up to 2,000 primary immigrant applicants and their families in 2017, with increased numbers in following years if the program performs well.

In an emailed statement, provincial Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab said the new census numbers are good news and show that the province is headed in the right direction.

“Last year, Nova Scotia welcomed more than 5,000 newcomers to our province. This is the highest number of arrivals since the end of the Second World War. Growing our population through immigration is not accidental — it is planned, supported, and invested in.”

But, she said, there’s more work to do, which is why the government continues to invest in programs to attract newcomers to Nova Scotia and to make it easier for immigrants to settle in the province.

Source:http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1515368-infographic-immigration-growing-in-nova-scotia

2016 census highlights: immigration and housing

The Canadian Press
Published Wednesday, October 25, 2017 8:42AM EDT 
Last Updated Wednesday, October 25, 2017 1:49PM EDT

OTTAWA -- Statistics Canada released the latest findings from the 2016 census Tuesday, this time focusing on Indigenous Peoples, immigration, and housing. Some selected highlights:

 In 2016, 7.5 million people -- about 21.9 per cent of the total population -- reported being foreign-born individuals who immigrated to Canada. In 1921, the census reported that proportion at 22.3 per cent, the highest since Confederation. Statistics Canada projects that proportion could reach between 25 and 30 per cent by 2036.

-- The census counted 1,212,075 new immigrants who permanently settled in Canada between 2011 and 2016, 3.5 per cent of the total population last year.

-- 60 per cent entered under the economic category, 26.8 per cent to join family already in Canada and 11.6 per cent of refugees. During the first four months of 2016, refugees accounted for one-quarter of all immigrants admitted to Canada, thanks to an influx of refugees from Syria.

-- Asia, including the Middle East, remains the largest source of recent immigrants to Canada at 61.8 per cent, followed by Africa at 13.4 per cent. Europe -- once dominant in this category at 61.6 per cent in 1971 -- ranked third at 11.6 per cent.

-- More immigrants have been settling in the Prairies. The percentage of new immigrants living in Alberta reached 17.1 per cent in 2016, compared with 6.9 per cent in 2001; In Manitoba, it went to 5.2 per cent, up from 1.8 per cent, and four per cent in Saskatchewan, up from one per cent in 2001.

-- Visible minorities numbered 7.7 million in 2016, 22.3 per cent of Canada's population. 30 per cent were born in Canada.

-- In 1921, more than 70 per cent of the foreign-born population reported English or French as a mother tongue, while fewer than 30 per cent reported a different language. In 2016, the precise opposite was true: more than 70 per cent reported a different mother tongue, compared to less than 30 per cent for English or French.

-- In 2016, nearly 2.2 million children under 15 -- 37.5 per cent of all children in Canada -- were either foreign-born themselves or had at least one foreign-born parent.

-- Some 1.9 million people reported being of South Asian heritage, fully one-quarter of the visible minority population. Chinese was the second-largest group at 1.6 million or 20.5 per cent of visible minorities, while blacks -- surpassing the one-million mark for the first time -- were third at 1.2 million, a share of about 15.6 per cent. Filipinos and Arabs rounded out the top five.

-- More than 9.5 million of the 14.1 million households in Canada owned their home in 2016, a rate of 67.8 per cent, down slightly from 69 per cent in 2011. However, rates varied widely depending on age: 70 per cent of homeowners in 2016 were aged 35-54, compared with 20- to 34-year-olds at just 43.6 per cent.

-- Nearly 1.9 million households -- about 13.3 per cent -- were living in condominiums in 2016, up 1.1 percentage points from 2011. Of those, about 67 per cent were owners, the rest renters.

-- Condos are most popular in Vancouver, where they comprised 30.6 per cent of all local households. Calgary was second at 21.8 per cent, followed by Abbotsford-Mission, B.C., at 21.5 per cent, Kelowna at 21.3 per cent and Toronto at 20.9 per cent.

-- In 2016, 24.1 per cent of households -- down from 24.4 per cent in 2006 -- were spending 30 per cent or more of their average monthly total income on shelter costs, such as rent or mortgage payments, electricity, heat and property taxes or fees. Of those, the highest proportions were in Toronto (33.4 per cent) and Vancouver (32 per cent).

-- Vancouver homeowners reported an average dwelling value of $1,005,920, compared to $734,924 in Toronto and $366,974 in Montreal. Across the country, the average value was $443,058, compared to $345,182 in 2011, not accounting for inflation.1.3647842.

Source: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/2016-census-highlights-indigenous-peoples-immigration-and-housing-1.3647890

The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) is being simplified for applicants beginning Jan. 2,

The multiple AINP streams and subcategories will be consolidated into one stream with one set of standard eligibility criteria, making it easier for both employers and workers, she said.Applicants will need to show they have a job, one that an Albertan could not be found to fill, Gray said.

The AINP will also impose yearly caps on the overall number of applications accepted, as well as caps by sector and occupation based on application volumes, she said. This will help distribute workers across sectors and occupations at different skill levels, she said. There will not be an increase in the total number of nominations, which is currently at 5,500, she added.These changes will allow the government to better plan ahead for occupations where labor-market shortages are expected, she said.Alberta Labour, she said, is projecting labor shortages in several sectors including nurse supervisors and registered nurses, with a forecast shortage of 5,434 workers by 2025. Medical technologists and technicians occupations are expected to have a shortage of 2,322 workers by 2025. Computer and information systems professionals will see a shortage of 1,426 workers by 2025, managers in construction and transportation are expected to be short 1,386 workers by 2025, and sales and service supervisor occupations are expected to experience a shortage of 1,145 workers by 2025. “I want to be clear,” Gray said. “These changes do not increase the number of foreign workers in Alberta. The overall immigration system is run by the federal government. These changes mean that the skilled workers who are here, filling a job where no Canadian is available, will be able to stay in Alberta and help support our economic growth and recovery.” 

Source: http://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/alberta-announces-economic-immigration-process-improvements