News Release - Government of Canada announces support for newcomer youth in the Peel region

Toronto, April 11, 2008 — Wajid Khan, Member of Parliament for Mississauga-Streetsville, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, today announced funding to help the Dixie Bloor Neighbourhood Centre and YMCA of Greater Toronto deliver settlement services to an estimated 120 newcomer youth in the Peel region.

The funding, totalling over $300,000, will go towards settlement services including: language and job skills training, leadership development programs, recreational activities, and the YMCA’s Youth Culture Workshop for Parents. This workshop will help parents understand how important it is for youth to participate in recreational activities and get a sense of youth culture and practices in Canada.

“The Government of Canada is committed to helping newcomers succeed,” said Mr. Khan. “Young people who are new to this country face their own unique challenges. This funding will provide youth in the Peel region access to improved services in their YMCA and community centre. These services will ease their transition to life in Canada and strengthen the Peel community as a whole.”  

“Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s investment in the YMCA’s Newcomer Youth Leadership Development Program and the YMCA Newcomer Parent Workshop Series is a significant contribution to the successful settlement of newcomer families in Peel,” said Laura Palmer Korn, Senior Vice President Employment & Community, YMCA of Greater Toronto. “We are extremely pleased to work with the federal government on this new initiative.”

“This new funding from Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will allow us to provide youth settlement services to support the advancement of new young Canadians and their full participation in the community,” said Lynn Petrushchak, Executive Director of Dixie Bloor Neighbourhood Centre. “The funding provided under the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement, signals the commitment of the Government of Canada to proactively respond to the specific issues of new youth, through innovative programs that will help them successfully integrate into Canadian society.”

Settlement services are an essential part of the federal government’s immigration program. Through the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement (COIA), the Government of Canada has increased settlement funding for Ontario by a total of $920 million over five years. Under COIA, Citizenship and Immigration Canada works with the province and immigrant-serving agencies to make a real difference in the lives of immigrants.

Newcomers to Canada can also look to the Foreign Credentials Referral Office (FCRO), which helps internationally trained individuals find the information they need to get their credentials assessed and recognized more quickly. The FCRO was established in 2007 to provide information, path-finding and referral services to help internationally trained individuals use their skills in Canada. There are now 320 Service Canada Centres across Canada offering in-person foreign credential referral services to newcomers.

CIC funds a number of programs that help newcomers settle, adapt, and integrate into Canadian society. These programs are delivered in partnership with provinces, territories and service-providing organizations and include the Immigrant Settlement and Adaptation Program, which provides orientation, referral services, advice and guidance; Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada, which provides basic language training for adults; and the Host Program, which helps newcomers connect with volunteers who help them access services, establish contacts in their field of work and participate in the community.

For more information on CIC’s programs, consult our website at www.cic.gc.ca.

For further information (media only), please contact:

Tim Vail
Press Secretary
Minister’s Office
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
613-954-1064

Madona Mokbel
Communications Branch
Ontario Region
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
416-954-7868