Hello, everyone.
I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration for the opportunity to appear before the committee.
I would also like to take the opportunity to thank the government for taking Syrian refugees and saving them from the war and trauma they had been facing in their previous countries of residence.
I would like to convey a message from the Syrian refugees who have been receiving services from our different.... They have told us they are very grateful to Canada. They appreciate all the public and private efforts for their resettlement in Canada.
Many of them have been living in exile in countries other than Syria for the short or long term. They never had a chance to feel a sense of belonging to the countries where they were residing before coming to Canada. They felt they were not part of the host countries. However, their treatment in Canada has been totally different, and they show their gratitude and are appreciative to the government. They feel they are welcome and that they and their children can build their future here in Canada.
I would like to share some of our findings in providing services to Syrian refugees.
We have noticed a significant difference between privately sponsored refugees and government-assisted refugees. On average, the privately sponsored Syrian refugees have higher education and they have been actively looking for employment opportunities. Many of them have university degrees and a few years of experience related to their education, and they have been able to find employment here in Canada. However, they are facing issues with their credential evaluation, because the universities back home have been closed or bombed, and they don't have access to those universities.
The privately sponsored Syrian refugees are, on average, young families with no children, or one or two children. The government-assisted Syrian refugees have bigger families, a larger number of children, and they arrive with a lower level of education. However, most of them have experience in trades. Couples or families are very motivated and encouraged; they are very eager to learn, get engaged, and integrate in their new home.
Currently, the issue from our perspective is the Syrian refugees accessing community services. Some organizations have received funding from government, but they are facing a capacity issue because they haven't been able to foresee the number of families that are interested in attending. Now they are saying that they have received the funding, but they don't have space in their programs.
In a general sense, the settlement process for government-assisted Syrian refugees will definitely be longer. They need some sort of support to utilize their transferrable skills to start their own businesses. I have seen that they have already started in food or carpentry industries.
It has been said that housing is an issue for most of the immigrants, and not only for Syrian refugees. I can say that Syrian refugees are not excluded from this group. However, they are very motivated; many attend school and are hoping they can learn and start their engagement soon.
I'm done, thank you.