Diane Finley, The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Ed Stelmach, The Premier of Alberta and Iris Evans, Alberta Minister of Employment, Immigration and Industry, signed a new Agreement for Canada-Alberta Cooperation on Immigration on May 11, 2007. The new agreement means Alberta will be able to nominate more immigrants possessing skills needed in the province, for quicker processing by the federal government.

The results of a recent Statistics Canada survey tracking the successes, challenges and attitudes of new immigrants to Canada over a number of years revels that recent immigrants are giving the thumbs-up to their newly adopted nation. The initial report presents a very positive picture and the conclusion that Immigrants to Canada Shows High Level of Satisfaction.

Canada already has a very generous immigration system that sees somewhere between 225,000 and 250,000 new permanent residents each year. The government of the day, whether Liberal or Conservative, often boasts of how well the system has worked in achieving their targeted goal. Recent Statistics Canada results suggest that within the next few decades 100% of Canadian growth in population will be the result of immigration only.

For a group of people living in refugee camps in Southern Bangladesh, the late arrival of the Canadian spring will mean a true fresh start in the spirit of the season. Canada is taking the initiative of opening its doors to a first group of Rohingya refugees living in UN camps in the southern tip of Bangladesh.

Both rural and urban communities in the province of Saskatchewan saw significant increases in immigration in the past year. The Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) attracted over one thousand nominations in 2006, the largest number to date, which added to the 26 per cent rise in the annual number of immigrants landing in the province. With 2,658 landed immigrants in 2006, the government of Saskatchewan is continuing to implement its "bold strategy to attract 5,000 newcomers annually by 2008."

While recent Canadian census told of the importance of immigration for Canadian growth, cities and provinces across Canada are devising strategies to attract newcomers to their region. The mayors of Atlantic Canada are confident that the quality of life in their cities will be the key to attracting immigrants to work, live and stay in their cities and towns.

In 2007 Canada accepted the highest number of immigrants (temporary and permanent residents) to date. This is based on the preliminary data released by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) on March 14th 2007. In 2007, Canada admitted 429,649 permanent residents, temporary foreign workers and foreign students. This number is more than 60,000 higher than it was just four years ago.

The McGuinty government is launching "All About Ontario," a new citizenship curriculum designed to ease newcomers' transition by teaching them more about life in this province, Ontario Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Mike Colle announced. All About Ontario' is claimed to be a part of the McGuinty government's comprehensive plan to break down barriers for newcomers.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has recently announced that the Canadian Visa Office in Dhaka will offer a full range of Canadian immigration services by July 2007.

Minister Mike Colle and Vic Dhillon, MPP Brampton West - Mississauga announced in Brampton; the government of Ontario is increasing funding to settlement and integration services to ensure newcomers get the help they need to succeed, Citizenship and immigration.