Immigration vital to future growth of Cumberland County

Former Syrian refugee Tareq Hadhad and his family were embraced by their Nova Scotia sponsors and in a brief period of time in this country they have demonstrated what determination and an enterprising spirit can accomplish.

The founder of a thriving little business called Peace by Chocolate is just one example of how newcomers are giving back and contributing to the economy of our province and country.

It is also why immigration is so vital to the future growth and prosperity of Atlantic Canada. In the case of Nova Scotia, our population has never been higher thanks in large part to the influx of immigrant.

The population reached an all-time high of 957,600 on Oct. 1 of last year. That's just over 5,200 more people compared to the same time a year earlier. Traditionally, the province has faced the challenge of retention with many newcomers to this region choosing to move on to bigger centres like Montreal and Toronto if they can’t find the supports and job opportunities here.

However, that trend seems to be changing. Gerry Mills, of the Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia, says retention numbers have improved. Two decades ago, just 38 per cent of newcomers stayed in the province. Now, she says, it's around 75 per cent.

We are likely to see a move to increase the sponsorship of more refugees to our rural communities in the months and years ahead. Jean-Nicolas Beuze, the representative of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Canada was in the Maritimes earlier this week making the pitch to this region to sponsor more refugees. Beuze met with sponsors, potential sponsors and refugee settlement agencies in Halifax on Monday. He also observed the Atlantic Immigration Pilot, a federal-provincial program that allows employers to hire people who are not Canadian citizens, if they cannot fill jobs locally.

Beuze told the CBC his goal is to match more international refugees with this area, in particular using the Blended Visa Office-Referred program. It allows private sponsorship groups to support a family for six months, which will be matched by the government for a further six months.

The UN official points out that many of the refugees come from a small business, farming and fishing background and they would be far more comfortable in a rural rather than urban setting. Nova Scotia’s Immigration Minister Lena Diab has mentioned in the past immigrants in Nova Scotia have higher employment rates than the Canadian average and are two times more likely to work in their field if they're internationally trained, compared with those in other provinces.

For immigrants who have started businesses, those businesses have a higher success rate (71 per cent) after three years of operation in Nova Scotia compared with the Canadian average (48 per cent).

Nowhere is population growth so desperately needed but right here in Cumberland County and we could certainly benefit from an influx of newcomers. We have demonstrated our ability to pull together to assist and welcome refugee families and embrace other immigrants who have moved to our area in recent years. At the same time, their presence serves to make our communities more culturally diverse and inclusive and in the long run will help us build the kind of economic prosperity we so dearly need.

Geoff deGannes is the past chairman of the Tantramar Radio Society. His daily commentaries can be heard on 107.9 CFTA.