1. Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program
Jennifer Ardon, Canadian Lutheran World Relief
March 13, 2015
Immigration Connection, Guelph

2. Until 2012, we had an average of 200 sponsorships per year
CLWR has a rich history of refugee resettlement:
Founded in 1946 in the aftermath of WWII when Canadian Lutherans sponsored European Lutherans whose lives were devastated by the war
1979: CLWR was one of the first Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAH) with the Canadian government’s new Private Refugee Sponsorship Program
Until 2012, we had an average of 200 sponsorships per year

3. Who can be sponsored via the PSR program?
United Nations definition of refugee: “any person outside his/her country of origin who has a well-founded fear of persecution by reason of religion, race, nationality, sexual orientation, political opinion or membership in a particular social group.” (1951 UN Refugee Convention and 1967 Protocol)

4. Refugee Resettlement Refugees have 3 possible durable solutions:
Repatriation
Local integration (in country of asylum)
Resettlement to a third country
Photo: Vocational training in commercial cooking skills, in Adjumani refugee settlement, Uganda. Photo: Bob Granke

5. 3 Resettlement Programs
Government-assisted (GARs)
Privately-sponsored (PSRs)
Asylum process (in-land determination)

6. GARs
PSRs
Are identified by UNHCR (refugee determination done overseas) and referred to Canadian visa office
Identified for resettlement by family, groups, individuals in Canada
Profiles are selected overseas by Canadian visa officers for government resettlement assistance
Refugee determination done overseas by Canadian visa office
Have permanent resident status upon arrival
Canadian government provides financial and settlement support for 1 year
Canadian individuals, groups or organizations provide financial and settlement support for 1 year

7. What private sponsors do:
Reception at airport
Financial assistance for 1 year
Finding housing/furniture/clothing
Orientation into community
School registration
Setting up utilities
Transportation system
Finding health care practitioners
Friendship, emotional support, etc.

8. Ways to privately sponsor refugees
Sponsorship Agreement Holder
Community Sponsorship
Group of 5
90 SAHs in Canada (faith-based, cultural-ethnic, NGO, etc)
Any group, church, association, organization
5 people needed to sign the application
Limited # of people they can sponsor a year
2 sponsorship applications per year
Limited where they can sponsor from (i.e. Nairobi, Cairo, Pretoria)
Can sponsor from anywhere in the world
Refugee applicant does not require refugee recognition document
Refugee applicant must have refugee recognition from UNCHR country of asylum

9. Types of Sponsorships Family-linked sponsorship
Blended Visa Office-Referred
Joint-Assistance
Full Sponsorship

10. Why be a private sponsor?
Part of rich history within Canada
Canada is the only country in the world with a private refugee sponsorship program
Many Canadians have their own refugee histories, generations back
Faith principles: welcoming the stranger
Mutually beneficial
Enriches the community
Allows us to understand our world better

11. Syrian Refugees This week marks 4th year of the conflict
3,755,417 registered Syrian refugees
Registered by UNHCR in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon
1.5 million Syrians registered by the Government of Turkey
24,055 Syrian refugees registered in North Africa.

12. Syrian Refugees
2013: Canada will resettle 1300 Syrian refugees by 2014
200 were GARs, 1100 were PSRs
Slow processing times, late arrivals
UNHCR requested that Canada take in 10% of 100,000 Syrian refugees ready to be resettled, over a 2 year period
January 2015 announcement: Canada will resettle 10,000 over a 3 year period
40% will be GARs
60% will be PSRs

13. Syrian Refugees Concerns: Do private sponsors have the capacity?
BVORs or full sponsorships?
Cuts to IFH extended health benefits
Downloading responsibility to private sector
Slow processing times
Will also resettle 2000 Iraqis of the 3000 the government announced they would resettle

14. For more information: Jennifer Ardon
Project Officer for Refugee Resettlement and Community Relations
CLWR Eastern Regional Office