The Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser, traveled to Alberta on March 18, 2022, to meet with Afghan refugees and Resettlement Assistance Program service provider organizations (RAP SPOs).
330 Afghan refugees and human rights defenders have recently arrived in Alberta, bringing the total number of Afghan refugees in the province to 1,600. Each week, Canada keeps accepting Afghan refugees under the special human rights defenders immigration stream launched in July 2021.
Over 9,400 Afghan nationals have been admitted to Canada under this stream. Canada is working hard to resettle at least 40,000 Afghan nationals as quickly as possible.
The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship stated:
"I would like to thank Albertans for their warm welcome and for the opportunity to hear the joys and challenges of the incredible work that communities and businesses are doing to support newcomers to Canada. I was especially happy to have met Afghan newcomers in person and welcome them home, and I was inspired by the stories of how they overcame so many obstacles and are now building a new life in Canada."