the Western Region: Focus on Capacity Presenter: Dr. Kim Lemky, - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Presenter: Dr. Kim Lemky, Acting Director Rural Development Institute Co-Presenters: Dr. William Ashton, RDI Director | Eleni Galatsanou, Research Associate

Immigration Settlement Services & Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity

18th National Metropolis Conference

Toronto, ON, March 3rd , Block B, 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 2

Introduction

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Percentange of Permanent Residents in BC, AB, SK, MB living outside the big cities, 2004-2013

Manitoba (less Winnipeg) Saskatchewan (less Regina & Saskatoon) Alberta ( less Calgary & Edmonton) British Columbia (less Vancouver & Victoria)

Source: CIC Facts and Figures 2013

68.3 22.0 36.6 12.2 86.5 16.2 27.0 2.7 83.0 34.0 14.9 19.1 84.2 26.3 10.5 10.5 20 40 60 80 Employment Family and/or Ethnocultural community Community / Lifestyle Other reasons Percent

Possible reasons for the increase of newcomers in rural communities

British Columbia Alberta Saskatchewan Manitoba

Source: Ashton,W.,Pettigrew,R.,Galatsanou,E.2015, Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in CIC’s western region

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 3

29 rural communities & 3 Territories 160 representatives of SPOs 35 reports

“Immigration Settlement Services & Gaps in the Western Region”, 2015 study

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 4

Are rural communities ready?

Capacity

SPOs

• Service offering
• Organizational capacity

Partnerships Broader community

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 5

SPOs’ Settlement Service Offering

Basic services (language training, help finding a job and with

daily life, social inclusion/integration support) – YES, In almost all communities

Specialized services (Job specific/advance language training,

health/mental health supports, specialized programming for youth, women and senior, assistance with foreign credential recognition) - No, in the majority of communities Basic services were identified as the most important ones needed. However, expansion of services is needed.

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 6

SPO organizational capacity

Does your organization have enough capacity to serve the newcomers in your community?

10 variables

• n SPOs’ organizational capacity

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SPOs’ organizational capacity

72.9% 72.4% 70.5% 62.4% 53.4% 52.1% 51.4% 27.1% 27.6% 29.5% 37.6% 46.6% 47.9% 48.6%

Coordinating services with other service providers Meet reporting requirements Communication with stakeholders Staff skills for delivery and maintenance of services Creation of governing and strategic plan Staff to provide services Financial support to maintain current services from gov’t …

AB-BC-SK-MB

Adequate Capacity Inadequate Capacity

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 8

SPOs’ organizational capacity

44.6% 37.7% 32.4% 55.4% 62.3% 67.6% Mobilization of community to support and welcome newcomers Financial support to maintain current services from

• ther sources

Provide services in both official languages

AB-BC-SK-MB

Adequate Capacity Inadequate Capacity

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 9

SPO’s needs

• Core funding
• Flexible policies that consider rural

issues

• Sharing information and beneficial

practices

Immigration Settlement Services and Gaps in the Western Region: Focus on Capacity 10

Enhancing partnerships

Strong partnerships help rural communities maximize resources and use capacity efficiently

• More emphasis on integration

activities

• Improve partnerships with

employers

• Local Immigration partnerships

No LIP in the selected communities , however 90% of SPOs reported working in partnership Activities in partnership Settlement 75% Welcoming 78% Integration 75%

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Community settlement capacity

Housing Childcare Public Transportation

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Conclusion

Yes, with some help:

• Expand services
• Support for SPOs / Core funding
• Fostering partnerships – LIPS
• Community settlement capacity

So, are small and rural communities ready to receive and retain newcomers?

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Partners

Provincial Governments: BC, AB, SK, MB Territorial Governments Settlement Service Providers Associations AMSSA, AAISA, SAISIA, MIRSSA, YTEC Research Participants

Reports can be found at

https://www.brandonu.ca/rdi/publication/immigration-settlement-services-and-gaps-in-citizenship- and-immigration-canadas-western-region/ and http://umanitoba.ca/faculties/arts/research/immigration/3747.html

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Contact:

• Dr. Kim Lemky

A/Director, Rural Development Institute, Brandon University Email: rdidirector@brandonu.ca | P: 204-571-8513

Questions