Citizenship and Immigration Minister, Jason Kenney, was in Bejing last week to meet with Chinese officials. China is one of the most important source countries for Canadian immigration. Now, more Chinese visitors and students are also coming to Canada than ever before.

Yesterday, the Government of Manitoba announced changes to the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program that will make it faster and easier for international students to apply for a Canadian Immigration (permanent resident) visa to stay and work in the province.

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.

The Government of Canada is proving its commitment to help immigrants succeed by announcing it is investing $686,000 in a Newcomers’ Centre that provides settlement services to immigrants in Scarborough, one of the most diverse and multicultural areas of the Greater Toronto Area.

Employment in Canada increased by 36,000 jobs in August. There were increases in the educational services, professional, scientific and technical services, and natural resources sectors in August. Quebec, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland were areas in Canada that showed particularly strong increases in employment.

Canada and India are connected both economically and culturally and there is great potential for even stronger ties between the two countries. Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is in Delhi, India this week to discuss how to expand and deepen the ties between Canada and India by helping a growing number of Indians to visit, work, study in and immigrate to Canada.

Canadian employers expect a steady hiring climate for the fourth quarter of 2010, according to the latest results of the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, the most extensive, forward-looking employment survey in the world. The survey shows that 21% of employers in Canada intend to increase staff levels before the end of 2010. The average outlook for all employers across all regions in Canada is approximately +15%, a 10 point increase from last year at the same time. Canada-wide, the Mining and Manufacturing (Durable Goods) sectors indicate the highest positive hiring outlook at 25% and 21%, respectively.

The Canadian government is urging officials in India, China and the Philippines to help Canada’s efforts to put an end to immigration fraud. Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, is travelling to these countries to meet with ministers and officials responsible for immigration to discuss issues of common concern. These issues include immigration fraud, illegal immigration, human trafficking, the resettlement of refugees, and also Canada’s announcement to increase the number of Federal Skilled Worker immigrants.

Canada has a long-standing tradition of helping those most in need. Presently, community groups in Canada are being encouraged to consider sponsoring refugees to come to Canada according to Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney.

Good news for workers in Saskatchewan as Statistics Canada releases data that shows Saskatchewan's average weekly earnings for June 2010 increased 4.6 per cent compared to June of last year. Inflation, however, only increased 0.3 per cent over the same period. This means workers in Saskatchewan have much greater spending power than they did just one year ago, and also indicates a strong economy in Saskatchewan.

Canada is poised to become an even more popular destination for Chinese. Last week, delegates from the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) paid an official visit to Niagara Falls, Ontario, to meet with the Honourable Rob Moore, Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism). This meeting follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding by Prime Minister Harper to implement Approved Destination Status (ADS) for Canada. This new status will allow Canada to promote tourism and market directly to Chinese consumers and also permits group travel from China to Canada.

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 announced yesterday it is implementing stricter regulations with the aim of further improving the working conditions for temporary workers and live-in caregivers in Canada. According to the federal government, consultations held over the past two years revealed that employers were exploiting some live-in caregivers because the system made them vulnerable. To address this, the federal government is tightening the regulations affecting live-in caregivers and temporary foreign workers, as well as the people who hire them. "The government is taking action to protect temporary foreign workers, including live-in caregivers, from potential abuse and exploitation," explained Immigration Minister Jason Kenney.

Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced today that the Government of Canada is playing a very important role in addressing anti-Semitism by financially sponsoring the Parliamentary Centre as facilitator for the upcoming Ottawa Conference on Combating Anti-Semitism, and Multiculturalism.

After a three-month ocean crossing, a small Thai cargo ship carrying 490 Sri Lankan Tamils arrived this morning in Esquimalt Harbour, near Victoria, British Columbia, amid tight security.

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 demonstrating its commitment to creating jobs and strengthening Canada’s knowledge economy by making a $600-million investment as part of Canada's Economic Action Plan. Researchers in Quebec and across Canada will benefit from new facilities and equipment, and universities will have more opportunities to develop and attract top scientists. The investment is designed to promote research excellence while continuing to improve Canada's long-term competitiveness.

A shortage of skilled workers in the electricity sector could jeopardize Canada’s ability to develop clean sources of energy. Over the next 10 years, 40% of all workers in the electricity sector plan to retire and 74% of the industry’s workers are over the age of 40. According to Canada’s Electricity Sector Council, more than 30% of companies that produce electricity do not have plans to manage this mass departure of workers. This will result in construction schedule delays, increased development costs, and smaller profit margins unless Canada is able to attract skilled workers from abroad.

According to Statistics Canada, Canada’s GDP grew by 0.1 per cent in May, after being flat in April. The growth was mostly driven by the goods-producing sector, which grew 0.6 per cent in May. Activity in oil and gas exploration also contributed to the increase.

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.

Employment prospects have improved in areas across most of Canada, but in the short term the chances of finding a job aren’t quite as promising in some of Canada’s largest cities.

With recent changes to visa rules, Saudi nationals can now get five-year multiple-entry temporary resident visas to enter Canada. The changes facilitate the movement of students and business people between Saudi Arabia and Canada.

Canada’s strong growth prospects and superior economic position have created a favourable foreign investment climate. Canada’s pragmatic approach to economic management—strict banking regulations, stable banking system, low debt ratio, and economic immigration—has created a safe place to invest. Canada was better prepared than any other developed nation to weather the effects of the global recession.

Six months have passed since an earthquake devastated the country of Haiti. To date, Canada has spent $150 million to support humanitarian and recovery efforts by providing shelters, removing rubble, and leading water and sanitation projects and child protection initiatives. Canada has pledged more than $1 billion to long-term re-building efforts. Additionally, the Canadian government is very quickly processing applications by Haitians to be re-united with their families in Canada.

Statistics Canada reports the Canadian economy added 93,200 jobs in June. Almost all of the jobs added are in Ontario (+60,000) and Quebec (+30,000). The large number of jobs added dropped Canada's unemployment rate to 7.9%. The current unemployment rate in the US is 9.5%. The statistic indicates the strength of the domestic economy in Canada.