An annual survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit has named Vancouver, British Columbia the most liveable city in the world. Vancouver has maintained the number one position for the past five years.

In about one month, Prince Edward Island will be introducing a new investor program into their Provincial Nominee Program. The province had an investor program from 2001 to 2008, but this new program will have some important changes.

By 2015 more than 1 million jobs will be available in Canada due to the aging population. As Canada has a low birth-rate, there will not be enough workers to replace the soon-to-be retiring employees. Embracing Cultural Diversity in the B.C. Workplace, funded by the Province of British Columbia, is a project aimed at informing employers of the benefits of hiring immigrants.

A recent poll from Sigma Analytics indicated that a majority of Saskatchewan residents agree or strongly agreed that immigrants are hard workers who contribute to the Canadian economy.

In 2010, Manitoba experienced a 17% increase in the number of immigrants arriving in the province. It is estimated that over 15,000 permanent residents arrived in Manitoba this past year.

Prince Edward Island was once considered a mostly homogenous society. Most immigrants arriving in Canada chose to settle in more popular areas, such as Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Recent statistics show that this trend is now changing.

Due to higher numbers of immigrants settling in the province of Alberta, the government of Canada has decided to increase funding for settlement agencies in the province. It is expected that Alberta will receive over $64 million in order to assist immigrants settle into their new Canadian communities.

Many French-speaking immigrants choose to settle in the province of Quebec as French is widely spoken throughout the province. French-speaking immigrants who choose to settle in other provinces often have difficulties integrating into a mainly English workforce.

Over 1,000 new immigrants from China are expected to arrive in Calgary in the coming year. Today, there are approximately 75,000 people of Chinese origin settled in Calgary. This influx of Chinese immigrants is strengthening political, cultural, and commercial relations between China and Canada and in particular, Alberta.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada announced today that Canada is investing more than $2 million for improved access to services to help newcomers successfully integrate.

The Government of Canada is investing more than $220,000 to support the Newcomers Services program at the YMCA in Sudbury, Ontario. This funding, made available through Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s (CIC’s) Settlement Program. The YMCA will provide one-on-one support, career counselling, and referrals to community services for newcomers in Sudbury.

In the last year, almost 50% of population growth in the province of Saskatchewan can be attributed to immigration. Statistics Canada is showing a record-breaking increase in Saskatchewan’s population, which now sits at just under 1,050,000. Saskatchewan's increase rate (+0.47%) was the second highest among all the Canadian provinces. It was Saskatchewan largest growth in population since the third quarter of 2007.

Ontario is helping skilled newcomers prepare to get jobs that match their education, qualifications and experience. The Ontario provincial government is investing $3.6 million in three Ontario cities to support programs designed to train new skilled immigrants to find employment in their professions and areas of expertise.

Earlier this week, Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger and Rosalinda Baldoz, Secretary of the Philippines Department of Labour and Employment, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to extend an existing partnership that connects Filipino workers with employment opportunities in Manitoba. This partnership also makes the immigration process more efficient and helps prepare Filipino workers for a new life in Manitoba.

Ontario aims to attract and retain highly-skilled international students who will ultimately help Ontario, and Canada, compete in the global economy. Since April 2010, international graduates from Ontario PhD programs have been eligible to apply for a Canadian Immigration (permanent residence) visa without a job offer through the Opportunities Ontario Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). This week it has been announced that the program has been expanded to also allow international students graduating from Ontario master’s degree programs to apply for Canadian permanent residence without a job offer.

Given current job market conditions, Alberta has decided to no longer accept applications for two of its streams under its provincial nomination program. Effective immediately, the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) will not accept new applications in the Family Stream and the U.S. Visa Holder Category. According to the Government of Alberta, this change is temporary until further notice.

The Government of Canada has approved requests by the provinces to increase the number of visas to be given out this year for Canadian permanent residence under the provincial nomination programs.

The Government of Canada is supporting the new Toronto Civic Participation Program, which aims to provide learning opportunities to participants from ethnic communities to increase their knowledge and understanding of Canada and how the Canadian government works. The goal is to increase civic participation among newcomers to Canada by offering learning activities regarding the Canadian democratic process, the structure of government and the rights and responsibilities associated with Canadian citizenship. Participants will also receive leadership training, and be expected to share their new knowledge and skills with others.

Last week, the governments of Canada and Saskatchewan announced they have signed an agreement to help protect temporary foreign workers from exploitation and abuse.

On Friday, British Columbia (BC) announced that it is making changes to its Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) that will allow the province to welcome greater numbers of qualified immigrants.

The federal government and the Manitoba provincial government have announced funding for an employment project that will provide youth and immigrants in Manitoba with job-preparation training and work experience.

Last week, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) announced that the Canadian government had extended its immigration agreement with the province of Ontario for an additional year.

Like all the provinces and two of the territories, Ontario and Nova Scotia have their own Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs).  Both provinces have recently made modifications to the International Student streams of their PNPs to make it easier for applicants to qualify for the programs.

The Southern Ontario town of Peterborough aims to attract more immigrants, and has set up an online portal about living and working in the town to help achieve this goal.

In 2009, the province of Manitoba welcomed the highest number of new immigrants in almost a century, and hopes to welcome 20,000 newcomers annually by 2017.