Nova Scotia wants more immigrants

By 2020, the province of Nova Scotia hopes to double the number of immigrants arriving in their province per year.

Nova Scotia is planning to attract approximately 7,200 immigrants a year. Nova Scotia’s Premier, Darrell Dexter, says that the province will need to issue at least 1,500 certificates under the Nova Scotia Provincial Nominee Program.

Currently, the Government of Canada has limited the number of certificates that Nova Scotia can issue to only 500. To meet the targeted number of immigrants, Nova Scotia will have to work with Ottawa to increase the number of certificates available in its provincial nominee program.

Nova Scotia has already launched a strategy entitled “Welcome Home to Nova Scotia.” This strategy is being supported by $790,000 in additional funding for immigration efforts.

"Welcome Home to Nova Scotia is the province's most ambitious and focused immigration plan ever and one of the most comprehensive strategies in the country," said Premier Darrell Dexter. "It will compliment jobs here by targeting international workers with the technical skills and international contacts the province needs to become more innovative, productive and competitive. It will ensure potential immigrants understand they are welcome and valued in Nova Scotia and that this province wants them to stay and build a life here."

This new strategy will also include improved settlement programs, quicker recruiting of temporary foreign workers for Canadian employers, add more protections for temporary foreign workers and enhance programs which encourage workers to make Nova Scotia their permanent home.

Alberta successfully attracting immigrants

According to the Alberta Immigration Progress Report 2011, over the past five years, Alberta has successfully implemented programs to help immigrants find jobs which meet their skills and experience.

More than 120,000 immigrants have settled in Alberta over the past five years. 85 per cent of those immigrants stay in Alberta once they arrive and immigrants accounted for more than 20 per cent of Alberta’s work force in 2010.

Alberta is welcoming increasing numbers of immigrants to the province, thanks to many of its government’s initiatives. Some of the initiatives introduced by the province in the past five years include:

•A Foreign Qualification Recognition Plan (FQR) introduced in 2008 that includes online facts sheets for 31 regulated occupations and compulsory trades and provides funding for professional regulatory organizations to increase their capacity to assess and recognize foreign qualifications.

•The launch of the online tool Working in Alberta that helps newcomers find the jobs they are trained to do and helps Alberta employers find the labour they need manage their businesses.

•Completed international education guides for the Philippines, China, United Kingdom, Russia, India, South Korea, Nigeria, Pakistan and Columbia. The guides provide comprehensive profiles of the educational systems in other countries and show how they compare to educational standards in Canada.

•The International Qualifications Assessment Services (IQAS) issued 6,234 assessment certificates to immigrants. Since 2005, 25,559 assessments have been completed. IQAS issues certificates to immigrants in Alberta to indicate how foreign education compares to Canadian educational standards for entry into the labour market.

• Temporary foreign worker information booklets, available in 14 languages, were developed for both employers and foreign workers to ensure they have a better understanding of their workplace rights and responsibilities.*

Learn if you qualify for Alberta’s Provincial Nominee Program by taking our free immigration assessment!

*Source: Canadian HRReporter