It is safe to say that Canada has established itself as a global leader in refugee integration and resettlement. The Private Sponsorship of Refugees or PSR program was introduced more than 4 decades ago. Since its introduction, Canadian citizens and permanent residents have responded well to the program by providing a safe place to thousands of refugees every year. What’s important to note here is that the program has been successful because of more than 130 organizations called sponsorship agreement holders or SAHs that sponsor refugees.
The number of organizations supporting refugees continues to increase as the program progresses. As a result, Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship, announced that SAHs could sponsor 13500 refugees in 2023. This shows an increase of 12150 spots available to SAHs for sponsoring refugees, which is quite high compared to the stats of 2012 when the cap was first introduced.
The increase in the number of spaces will enable new SAHs to get started and fuel the growth of well-established SAHs. These organizations manage the entire sponsorship process, including identifying refugees, submitting applications, and supporting sponsored newcomers.
The PSR program is a great addition to Canada’s other 2 resettlement programs, namely the Blended Visa Office-Referred or BVOR and the Government-Assisted Refugee Program or GAR. Canada welcomes a massive number of refugees every year through these programs. Plus, these programs would ultimately help Canada meet its goal of granting entry to more than 83500 privately sponsored refugees by 2025.
Needless to say, Canada is setting an example with its BVOR and PSR programs for other countries across the globe. By participating in the Global Refugee Sponsorship Initiative or GRSI, Canada promotes the expansion and adoption of community sponsorship programs to fulfill the country’s needs. Don’t forget that the GRSI has also helped Argentina, Belgium, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand in the development of different programs.
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