Refugees and other newcomers to Canada have been welcomed for years to Northern Ontario, but now there's a new internet tool to make the transition even easier.
It's an immigration portal that is now available in seven different languages:
- English
- French
- Chinese
- Spanish
- Arabic
- Punjabi
- Filipino
Rita Loza is from Ecuador, but came to Canada years ago, and is now proud to call Timmins home.
"It's fantastic because this definitely will attract more people to come, especially for us Spanish-speaking people. Once you get to a website that explains things in your language, you know you have a community behind that." says Loza.
The website, www.neoimmigration.ca, took three years to design and build, and now offers up attractive vignettes of Northern Ontario life.
"All of the basic information that you would need to make a decision on moving to a certain area or just informing somebody about what the community is about." says Tom Baby of the Timmins Multicultural Centre.
The portal features local immigration success stories told through pictures and videos. However, the potential of this new online presence is about more than families settling down in Northeastern Ontario. Antoine Vezina, with the Timmins Economic Development Corporation, says it’s also targeting workers.
"It's in response to some workforce challenges and challenges faced by employers in terms of their needs for labour force." says Vezina.
While many factors may drive the push to attract immigrants to the northeast, Rita Loza says Timmins is a good home, and encourages her fellow Latin Americans to make the move here.
Loza says the website will help people everywhere to see all of the amazing things that Northern communities can offer immigrants.
“It quickly became home for me, and could become home for so many others.” said Loza.
