Update on the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement(COIA)
Since the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement was signed in November 2005, there has been a great deal of activity on several fronts. During the summer of 2006, extensive consultations concerning additional funding under COIA were held throughout Ontario with organizations and newcomers, including those representing francophone minority communities. The three main needs expressed in the consultations were employment, language training and better information and guidance. The consultation report is accessible on the CIC website.
COIA Strategic Plan
These important consultations then fed into the COIA Strategic Plan, which was released in December 2006. The objective of the COIA Strategic Plan is to guide the expenditure of funding. The plan provides a roadmap for the Settlement and Language Training Working Groups created under the COIA. Members on these working groups include officials from both the federal and provincial governments, as well as municipal representatives. The groups review priorities which have been identified in the Strategic Plan, and make recommendations to the COIA Steering Committee (The Steering Committee is one of the committees formed under the governance structure of the COIA. It includes representatives from both the provincial and federal governments. Subject matter experts from CIC and MCI are invited to participate as well, whenever that is necessary.).
The strategic plan can be viewed on the CIC website.
Language Training Working Group
The first meeting of the COIA Language Training Working Group (LTWG) since the development of the COIA Strategic Plan, was held on May 7, 2007 in Toronto. The LTWG is co-chaired by Sheila McMullin, CIC (Citizenship and Immigration Canada) and Judy Stanleigh, MCI (Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration).
The work of the LTWG focuses on Strategy 2 of the COIA Strategic Plan:
Build on existing services to develop and implement a comprehensive language assessment, referral and training system that assists newcomers to become competent in English or French as quickly as possible.
The COIA Steering Committee identified three priorities to be addressed by the LTWG this year:
- Coordinated assessment system for CIC and Ontario FSL/ESL programs - This priority focuses on issues of assessment and referral such as avoiding the need to assess individuals multiple times (for different purposes, at different times or in different communities) and on the expansion of the use of assessment centres; coordinated assessment will also ensure that newcomers are being appropriately assessed and referred according to the purpose for which they want to use their language.
- Language in the work place - This priority may address a range of issues from ensuring that people with low language skills have an understanding of workplace health and safety issues to involving employers and community groups in language training model development. It may also include ways of improving newcomer business language skills, business communication skills, business sector-specific language skills and/or language in the workplace.
- Self-directed learning and alternative learning models - This priority will look at the need for multi-channel approaches to learning language.
After scoping out the three topics, the Language Training Working group has begun to discuss the first priority in more detail. The LTWG will develop recommendations for moving forward on each of the priorities.
Settlement Working Group
The Settlement Working Group (SWG) also met in September. The co-chairs for this group are Mike Battrick from CIC and Yvonne Ferrer from MCI. The work of the Settlement Working group focuses on Strategy 1 of the Strategic Plan:
Develop a flexible coordinated system of settlement services with strong linkages and clear pathways to services newcomers need such as language training, labour market integration, and social services.
This group has been focusing on underserviced areas, making recommendations to address the most critical needs and gaps. They have also been looking at services for youth and pre-arrival services for those newcomers awaiting their visas abroad, as well as for improvements to the current language interpretation and translation services .
Other COIA Initiatives
Other important initiatives under the COIA include the Provincial Nominee Program which was implemented in 2006. The Ontario Pilot Provincial Nominee Program (Pilot PNP) is Ontario's first-ever nomination program. The Pilot PNP is designed to contribute to job creation, job retention and economic development by attracting new investment, and by helping employers in targeted sectors to attract and retain qualified employees for jobs for which there are currently labour-market needs. The Pilot PNP also supports government priorities by facilitating the immigration of professionals in the health care and education sectors.
The province of Ontario will be bringing in 500 nominees during the course of 2007/08. A Municipal Online Immigration Information Online Program will serve the needs of the nominees. This program provides funding to municipalities to ensure that immigrants can learn about Ontario communities and find local information and services. Last year the following communities joined the program and it is anticipated that more communities will go online this year. SNAP
Published by TESL Ontario, SNAP aims to inform readers about new initiatives and resources in the field of settlement services. SNAP will also have notices of upcoming conferences, workshops or other professional development opportunities.
