Best Country For Kids: Canada Best Place In The World To Raise Children

Happy Canada Day (Photo credit: Anirudh Koul)

Congratulations Canada — you have yourself a mighty fine reputation among parents.

In the recent HSBC Expat Explorer Survey 2012, Canada ranked first among the nine nations considered in the "raising children abroad" category, competing against such countries as the Netherlands, the USA and Saudi Arabia.

Surveying more than 5,300 expats around the globe — who, after all, would know more about raising kids in a variety of countries than anyone else — the annual survey is meant to help those who are moving to foreign countries get the most information they can before they depart. Although the report did not break down findings into cities, the Mercer 2012 Cost of Living Rankings marked Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, and Calgary on their extensive list of expatriate communities.

Of particular note in the 2012 HSBC survey was the Canadian love of the outdoors, with 40 per cent of expat parents saying their children now spent time outdoors once they moved to Canada, and 45 per cent saying their kids are now playing sports. Even the parents were affected, with a quarter of the adults noting they were playing more sports since arriving in Canada.

Other global rankings haven't seen Canada fare quite as well, with Save the Children's State of the World's Mother report putting the country at the 19th best place in the world to be a mother, based on male-to-female income ratios, maternity leave benefits, educational enrolment, female life expectancy, risk of maternal death, and women's participation in government.

Meanwhile, separate categories in the HSBC survey proved illustrative in light of Canadians' beliefs about ourselves. A rank of 14 for overall experience puts the country in the middle of the pack of 30 countries, though being the fifth easiest country to set up in (taking into account things like finding accommodation) could speak to the efficiency of our bureaucracy as compared to other places. Meanwhile, 62 per cent of expats felt the locals were incredibly friendly, and chose to spend more time with "homegrown' Canadians than other expats.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/10/16/best-country-for-kids_n_1970883.html#slide=more257227

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Loans aim to help immigrants return to skilled fields

A new program has been launched to help Manitoba immigrants who were dentists, nurses, engineers or other skilled workers in their home countries get back into their professional fields.

The two-year pilot program, Recognition Counts! Micro Loans for Skilled Immigrants, will offer micro loans of up to $10,000 to low-income, skilled immigrants and provide career and financial counselling to help them meet Canada's re-accreditation and training requirements.

"Recognition Counts! gives our province's newcomers the resources they need to get their qualifications recognized, enter our labour market sooner and build a life for their families," said Manitoba Immigration Minister Christine Melnick.

"These microloans are good for our economy and they'll make a real difference in the lives of these families."

The program was designed by Supporting Employment and Economic Development (SEED) and Assiniboine Credit Union in collaboration with the province and federal government.

Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) is providing SEED with $1.2 million, including $1 million for a loan loss reserve that will guarantee 80 percent of each loan.

The province is contributing $250,000 for administration costs over three years.

Highlights of the micro loan:

• Up to $10,000.
• Can be repaid over five years.
• Interest rate is fixed at prime plus two per cent.
• No loan fees.
• A credit history in Canada is not required.
• Repayment is interest only during the immigrant's certification/study period (minimum $10/month).
• Repayment of principal and interest starts 90 days after the applicant finds employment in their field or within six months of finishing the Career Action Plan, whichever comes first.

The loan can be used for:

• Living expenses (e.g. food, shelter, transportation, childcare, etc.).
• Tuition, textbooks and computers.
• Expenses associated with costs of registration or licensing with a professional regulatory body or association or Apprenticeship Manitoba.
• Tools, equipment, work clothes, personal protective equipment.

Facts on immigration:

• 15,962 — number of immigrants to Manitoba in 2011.
• 3,725 — number of immigrants to Manitoba in 1999.
• 6.4 per cent — number of Canada's total new immigrants who came to Manitoba in 2011.
• Top 4 destinations for immigrants in 2011 — Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Winnipeg.

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2012/10/12/mb-micro-loans-immigrants-manitoba.html