December 15, 2011
Newcomers to Vancouver, Burnaby and New Westminster to Receive Settlement Services

VANCOUVER – Newcomers to Vancouver, Burnaby and New Westminster will receive enhanced immigrant settlement services to help them settle into their new lives and gain employment through $6,247,113 to four organizations:

Association of Neighbourhood Houses of Vancouver      $1,609,258.67

ISS-BC                                                $1,550,046.00

MOSAIC                                                $1,545,476.00

S.U.C.C.E.S.S.                                        $1,542,333.33

This funding is part of a $20.3 million annual budget for the Settlement and Integration Program under WelcomeBC.

Why this matters:

• Funding goes towards orientation classes and workshops on a wide variety of topics such as: how to find a job, find a place to live, navigate the local transit system and learn banking basics. 
• B.C. continues to be one of Canada’s most popular destinations for new immigrants, welcoming more than 40,000 newcomers each year.
• Services through WelcomeBC are provided to more than 100,000 newcomers in 66 communities across the province, by more than 100 service providers.

Quotes:

Vancouver-Fairview MLA Margaret MacDiarmid
“British Columbia welcomes more than 40,000 new immigrants every year, many of whom decide to settle in Vancouver. This funding will assist four organizations with over 225 years of combined experience supporting immigrants to successfully settle into our communities with jobs and necessary life skills.”

Burnaby-Lougheed MLA Harry Bloy:
"One of British Columbia’s great strengths is our ability to help newcomers fit in and feel right at home. Programs like these help newcomers to Burnaby and around the province to find places to live, get jobs and become fully contributing members of their communities.”

Quick Facts:

• WelcomeBC’s award-winning website helps approximately 600,000 clients each year from B.C. and around the world, offers information accessible in several languages and makes it easier for immigrants to access vital information.
• By 2019, it’s expected that there will be over a million job openings in the province, and skilled immigrants will play a vital role in filling many of those positions.

Learn More:

Watch the newcomers’ videos here: http://www.welcomebc.ca/wbc/immigration/settle/newcomersguide

• Users can mix and match the language the host speaks in with the subtitle; for example, viewers can watch the videos in Punjabi with English subtitles.
• Once the host’s language is selected, all the information on the screen will convert automatically.
• Clients can download the video scripts in any of the eleven languages to keep the instructions/lessons close at hand.
• The technical sophistication of these web videos/mobile offering is a first for any jurisdiction in Canada.

-30-