Mendicino: Immigration key to Canada’s 21st century success

"The progressive immigration policies we continue to implement are laying the foundation for Canada’s success in the 21st century."

These are the words of two Canadian ministers who recently wrote on the importance of immigration to the country's economy.

Marco Mendicino is Canada's Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship while Navdeep Bains is the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry.

Mendicino's family arrived to Canada from Italy following the Second World War while Bains' family arrived from India.

Today, the ministers represent two of countless immigrant success stories across Canada as they oversee portfolios which are critical to the country's economic development.

In their article, Mendicino and Bains discuss that while starting off as new immigrants in Canada can be difficult at first, the country provides newcomers with many opportunities to succeed, which enriches Canada in the process.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs

Today, the two ministers are responsible for enacting policies that help continue Canada's positive immigration cycle: Canada provides immigrants with opportunities, and immigrants repay Canada economically and socially.

Both ministers share the mandate of attracting immigrants, foreign workers, and international students to Canada.

To support this mandate, the federal government launched the Global Talent Stream in 2017, which has since attracted tens of thousands of tech workers to Canada, and also created tens of thousands of more jobs in the process.

Me and @NavdeepSBains on the doors and in our happy place! Happy birthday, my friend. Hope it’s a great one and that you get some time with the family! 👊 pic.twitter.com/MlBovKlbZl

— Marco Mendicino (@marcomendicino) June 16, 2020

Canada was set to welcome higher levels of global talent in 2020 following the strong year it had in 2019.

Earlier this year, Mendicino announced Canada's new Immigration Levels Plan which would support higher levels of newcomer attraction.

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted these plans but Mendicino has consistently stated that immigration will remain a priority for Canada.

This was stressed once again by him in his recent article.

"We know that our focus must remain on attracting top-tier talent to Canada", write Mendicino and Bains.

This is demonstrated by the fact that foreign workers are largely exempt from Canada's current COVID-19 travel restrictions.

In addition, Express Entry and Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) draws are still happening. In fact, Express Entry is off to its fastest start since 2017.

Once the pandemic has passed, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is expecting a surge in more global talent coming to Canada.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs