Honourable Chair, vice-chairs and members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to submit a brief and appear on behalf of Talent Beyond Boundaries.
We are engaging the global private sector and national governments to provide safe and legal economic migration options for skilled refugees in addition to traditional humanitarian protection. Our goal is for skilled refugees to be able to move from places where they cannot work to companies and countries where they can do so safely and legally, to move to secure futures based on their skills, not just their status.
To do this, we are demonstrating the wide range and depth of talent among refugee populations. We're engaging private sector employers who need to fill skill gaps, and we're working with governments to identify barriers in economic immigration systems that unintentionally penalize refugees. Economic immigration streams were not designed with refugee circumstances in mind. That has led to unintended barriers to the participation of skilled refugees in economic immigration.
If allowed to compete for positions, skilled refugees can be part of the talent pipeline that fills skill gaps and fuels economic development. We know that among refugee populations there are many educated and skilled people who want to compete for international employment. In 2016, we created a first-of-its-kind, online digital platform for refugees to share with us their education, skills, work experience and language abilities.
In less than a year, more than 10,000 refugees in Lebanon and Jordan had registered and become part of a searchable talent catalogue database. They span more than 200 occupations, from engineers, IT developers and health care providers to carpenters, tailors and chefs. Across Canada, Talent Beyond Boundaries is now working with employers facing labour shortages in diverse sectors, including IT, health care and manufacturing. While these employers have embraced our mission to help open new solutions for refugees, they partnered with us because they face a critical need for skilled workers.
Let me give you a couple of examples.
Bob Collier is the president and founder of Davert Tools, an advanced manufacturer in Niagara Falls. He had long-time employees retiring and could not find anyone to fill the position of a tool and dye maker. He interviewed refugee candidates and made a job offer to a tool and dye maker who's a Syrian refugee currently residing in Lebanon.
Bonfire is a fast-growing e-procurement firm in Kitchener–Waterloo. They cannot find software developers fast enough. After a competitive recruitment process, they offered a full stack developer job to another refugee who had fled to Lebanon.
These are two successful job candidates who can immigrate to Canada with provincial nominations through economic pathways and not through a refugee stream. They can move on the basis of their skills and are headed to good jobs in sectors that need more talent.
Having successfully identified skilled refugees who can help fill skill gaps, and private sector companies that need and want them, we are now working with the Government of Canada to ensure that there is a viable economic immigration pathway for those with needed skills and the human capital.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has developed the economic mobility pathways project, EMPP, to test refugee access to federal and provincial economic pathways. We are working with them to identify barriers, and we hope to develop solutions. The EMPP does not create a new pathway to Canada. Rather, it considers refugee access to existing economic pathways. Provinces and territories taking part in this project are Manitoba, Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Yukon. Eligible skilled refugees are from East Africa and the Middle East.
This innovative project evidences Canada's commitment to understanding how the global refugee talent pool can fit into Canada's skilled immigration future. We believe that Canada can strengthen its economic pathways to ensure Canada's competitiveness as a country that attracts top talent from anywhere in the world, including among refugees.
Talent Beyond Boundaries is committed to working with the government to build on the economic mobility pathways project and to removing barriers across federal and provincial economic pathways.
Adjusting economic streams to be more equitable to skilled refugees makes sense. Labour mobility is a market-based solution that generates economic benefits while contributing to resolving a humanitarian crisis. It is complementary to traditional humanitarian resettlement and Canada's community sponsorship programs.
Canada has the opportunity to develop this new, durable solution for refugees and their families that benefits Canadian businesses and communities in need of talent.
Thank you very much. I look forward to your questions.