Afghanistan committee  Thank you. I would say that investing in the development of an emergency response framework that is set with objective criteria so that can determine how emergency responses are handled in the future, and for IRCC to be funded sufficiently to process this Afghan response and hav

Afghanistan committee  I don't have a particular response to your specific question. I'm not familiar with the details of what has been set up for the Ukrainian family reunification response.

Afghanistan committee  What I will say is, as you have mentioned, that expanding and maximizing the use of all of the available pathways to resettle Afghans in need is something we would support.

Afghanistan committee  I can do that.

Afghanistan committee  Yes to increasing the immigration levels. That is crucial to having resources dedicated to process the existing inventory. Resources are needed at IRCC to hire staff to process cases and also for settlement-providing organizations to be able to make sure they are intentionally co

Afghanistan committee  Thank you, Ms. Kwan. My specific comment was in regard to the eligibility criteria currently in place for Afghan refugees. Right now, in order to be able to submit the private sponsorship application of an Afghan, you have to be part of an LGBTQI group, a persecuted religious mi

Afghanistan committee  Thank you, Member Kwan. Our association does not have an explicit position on that. What I would share is that we are concerned about the high inventory and the potential that a lifted cap could raise on processing in an equitable way for all refugees.

Afghanistan committee  Thank you. Merci, Mr. Brunelle-Duceppe. I would echo much of what Wendy has shared and reframe it to: what is it that we need? There has been a slow release of the plan for an “emergency response”. We need clear and ongoing communication to best be able to plan and also to

Afghanistan committee  Are we looking at resettling the refugees who had already been identified by the UNHCR, pre-Taliban takeover?

Afghanistan committee  I'll quickly respond, and I see, Wendy, that you're wanting to jump in. I would say that Afghans were among the top five refugee groups in their need for resettlement pre-2021. There are some cases of refugees who have been privately sponsored within our existing inventory, but

Afghanistan committee  Sure. Thanks for the question, Mr. Baker. There are 130 sponsorship agreement holders in Canada, many who have been involved since 1979. Over the past few years, since 2016—I have some stats here of landings—we have resettled over 18,000 privately sponsored refugees a year. I w

Afghanistan committee  Thank you for the question, MP Findlay, and to Wendy for all that you've interjected. It's been great to hear from you. I think first and foremost I want to say that Afghans are in need, and our association has also raised concerns about the limits on the eligibility criteria. C

Afghanistan committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair and honourable committee members, for the invitation to speak with you today. I'm joining you from the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinabe and most recently the Haudenosaunee people. Thank you for the work of this committee, and for being respo