Evaluation of the going to Canada Immigration Portal Initiative

1. Background

1.1 Introduction

This report presents the results of an evaluation of the Going to Canada Immigration Portal (GTC-IP) Initiative. Guided by an evaluation matrixFootnote 1 and logic model (See Appendix A1 & A2), the study examined the Initiative’s relevance and performance, and sought to provide key recommendations which can facilitate ongoing improvements to the operation of the GTC-IP and future policy decisions. The services of Malatest and Associates consulting firm were retained by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) to assist with the conduct of the evaluation between April and December, 2010.

The report is organized into four sections:

  • Section 1 contains background information about the GTC-IP Initiative;
  • Section 2 provides information on the evaluation framework, methodologies, and limitations;
  • Section 3 presents the evaluation findings by themes of relevance and performance; and
  • Section 4 presents overall conclusions and recommendations.

1.2. Profile of the GTC-IP Initiative

1.2.1 Policy and program context

Canada has one of the highest rates of net immigration of all G-8 countries. The Government of Canada believes that immigrants will drive most of Canada's net labour force growth in the coming decade. The Government is, therefore, committed to taking action to increase participation in the workforce by reducing barriers to labour force participation for under-represented groups, including new immigrantsFootnote 2. The Government is also currently focused on initiatives that will assist immigrants and foreign-trained individuals to integrate.Footnote 3

While successful integration of immigrants into Canadian society and the economy is vital, according to recent studies it is an area that could be improved. In a recent longitudinal surveyFootnote 4 of immigrants conducted by Statistics Canada and CIC, “finding an adequate job” was cited as the most often encountered difficulty by almost half (46%) of the new immigrant respondents. Economic immigrants were most likely to cite employment difficulties (54%), followed by refugees (35%) and family class immigrants (29%). The survey also revealed that the most predominant perceived barriers to employment were: a lack of Canadian work experience (50%); a lack of contacts in the job market (37%); and a lack of recognition of foreign experience (37%) and foreign qualification (35%).

The Government of Canada has emphasized its commitment to position Canada as a destination of choice for skilled immigrant workers. The 2004 Speech from the Throne stated that the Government of Canada would ensure more successful integration of new immigrants into the Canadian economy and into communities, and that it would implement measures to inform prospective immigrants and encourage them to acquire necessary credentials before they arrive in Canada. Subsequently, in Budget 2005, the Government of Canada made a commitment to invest $100 million over five years towards an integrated client service delivery strategy within CIC, which included the development of an Immigration Portal. The Portal was intended to address the identified lack of specific and relevant information available to prospective and recent immigrants.

The GTC-IP is also linked to the Government of Canada’s Internationally Trained Workers Initiative and Advantage Canada commitments to improve labour market efficiency and increase the quantity and quality of the Canadian workforce (reiterated in the October, 2007 Speech from the Throne).

1.2.2. Initiative description and objectives

The GTC-IP began in 2005 with the enhancement and expansion of the Going to Canada website - then located at www.directioncanada.gc.ca. The GTC site was created separately from the main CIC website in order to focus easy to understand, accessible and relevant information on immigration and settlement issues in a single, authoritative location, which would not include departmental and CIC corporate content. The GTC was also envisioned as a location to house new interactive web tools that would help users in their search for information. Partnering and linking to HRSDC’s Working in Canada (WiC) site, CIC recognized that HRSDC would be the authoritative source for immigrant labour market content. Indeed, the partnership ran according to the guiding principle that settlement and employment outcomes are linked and interdependent.

Together, the GTC and WiC components formed the GTC-IP, which contain targeted information and tools to address the information needs of prospective and new immigrants, their friends and family members currently residing in Canada, foreign students, as well as immigrant-serving organizations. The Initiative is led by CIC in partnership with HRSDC. It was also recognized that the Government of Canada, alone, cannot integrate internationally trained workers and newcomers into the Canadian labour market and society. Immigration is a shared Federal - Provincial -Territorial responsibility. For this reason, CIC provided annual contribution funding to the provinces and territories to facilitate the development of (currently 10) similar provincial and territorial portals that are linked to the GTC-IP. Today, CIC, HRSDC and the provinces and territories work collaboratively to enhance and structure immigration related content across Canada.

The objectives of the GTC-IP initiative are as follows:Footnote 5

  1. Create an authoritative, comprehensive Internet source which will provide relevant, timely and easily accessible on-line information and tools for preparing for the immigration process, labour market and settling in Canada;
  2. Increase prospective immigrants’ awareness of the opportunities, challenges and barriers awaiting them so that they may make informed decisions about immigrating to Canada;
  3. Inform immigrants of the steps they need to take to adapt to living and working in Canada and to participate more fully in the community and the labour market after they arrive;
  4. Help immigrants make local connections and informed decisions about where to settle through links with provinces, territories, municipalities and communities; and,
  5. Build effective long-term relationships with stakeholders and partners.

1.2.3. Structure and navigation of the GTC-IP initiative sites

The GTC-IP Initiative consists of three principal components, including the Going to Canada (GTC) website (www.goingtocanada.gc.ca), the Working in Canada (WiC) website (www.workingincanada.gc.ca) and 10 provincial and territorial portalsFootnote 6. The GTC and WiC sites employ a common look and feel, with the WiC and GTC tools being replicated and embedded on multiple sites across the Initiative (please see Sections 1.3.1 and 1.3.2 for a complete description of these tools).

When accessing information, a user is likely to begin at one of the federal sites that focus on general content for living, studying, settling, and working in Canada. Radiating outward, the GTC also links to 10 other P/T portals where users are able to gain information at more regional and local levels. The GTC-IP and P/T portals also link to other government and non-government sites, such as municipal portalsFootnote 7, and those of other government departments, and immigrant servicing organizations, which contain information relevant to the target audience. Internet search engines may also be used to bypass the main GTC-IP hub and go to any individual site within the Initiative directly.

Figure 1-1 presents the components of the GTC-IP Initiative, and the basic linkages among those components.

Figure 1-1: The GTC-IP initiative

The GTC-IP initiative

1.2.4. Resources

The GTC-IP Initiative is a federally funded horizontal initiative. Costs for the GTC-IP Initiative over 5 years (2005-06 to 2009-10) amount to $47.5 million, with $9.4 million provided to HRSDC and $38.1 million provided to CIC, of which $27.8 million was then provided to provinces and territories for the development of P/T portals, with the exception of Ontario where funding was used to support the development of municipal portals. The ongoing annual budget for the GTC-IP is $8.1 million for 2010-11 onward: $1.0 million for HRSDC and $7.1 million for CIC, of which approximately $5.7 million is to be allocated to the provinces and territories.Footnote 8

The following sections provide a brief description of each of the key partners in the GTC-IP Initiative as well as their related roles, responsibilities and corresponding components of each partner.

1.3. Roles and responsibilities

1.3.1. Citizenship and Immigration Canada

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) is the federal lead on the GTC-IP Initiative and holds project management responsibilities, overall coordination, and oversight for the Initiative. Additionally, CIC is responsible for the business, technical implications and content integration on the GTC website. This includes providing all necessary information about the immigrant selection process and settlement services, and ensuring that immigrants have access to comprehensive and targeted information and services on how to immigrate and settle in Canada.

There are four branches within CIC responsible for different aspects of the Initiative and GTC website:

The E-Communications Branch has overall responsibility for the GTC-IP Initiative, including serving as the front office for the coordination of provincial/territorial web communications, working groups, partnership development, and updating and maintaining GTC-IP web presence.

The Operational Management and Coordination (OMC) Branch is responsible for negotiating, writing and approving all comprehensive funding arrangements related to all provincial and territorial portal activities, monitoring provincial and territorial claims against funding arrangements, and performing audits and other corrective actions when required.

Integration Branch is responsible for settlement partnerships with provinces and territories as well as with HRSDC and other federal departments regarding content development to ensure better outcomes for immigrants. In addition, Integration Branch must ensure appropriate linkages between immigration, settlement and labour market policies to inform relevant content development for the Portal.

Information Management and Technologies Branch (IMTB) provides technical support to the GTC-IP Initiative on an as-needed basis and is not a dedicated resource to the Portal.

In 2010 E-Communications Branch took over from Integration Branch as the lead on the Portal Initiative.

The Going to Canada website

The GTC website contains four content categories: information on welcoming newcomers to Canada, immigrating to Canada, visiting Canada, and studying in Canada, as well as links to the Working in Canada website and 10 P/T portals. Along with its French language counterpart, Se Rendre au Canada (www.serendreaucanada.gc.ca), the GTC site also contains a number of tools, described below.

The entry requirements tool

The entry requirements tool is a user-centric tool to help users determine requirements to immigrate, work, study, or visit Canada. Users answer a series of questions specific to their situation and are provided with a results page based on their answers. A step-by-step approach simplifies information for users.

Service Provider Organizations (SPO) tool

The SPO tool helps newcomers find organizations in their area that can aid them in their settlement. It also helps Canadians to get involved in welcoming newcomers to their community. CIC developed this interactive tool in an effort to help new immigrants find programs and services available in their community more quickly and easily. It allows site visitors to anonymously answer a few short questions to confirm their location, client type and services of interest. A given site visitor’s responses are then used to generate a personalized list of all SPOs that satisfies their specified criteria.

The main CIC website

The CIC main site (www.cic.gc.ca) and the GTC-IP are run by Citizenship and Immigration Canada. They share a similar intended client base but are currently maintained as separate and distinct entities (though they do link to each other). In 2008, however, CIC endorsed a plan to proceed with incorporating some CIC-owned Going to Canada content and tools, which were originally developed as part of the GTC-IP Initiative, from the Portal into the CIC departmental website. It was felt that this approach would allow both CIC and GTC-IP partners to realize the short-term goal of a heightened profile for key GTC-IP elements on the CIC website, while allowing for enhancements over the medium to longer term as site integration and partnership requirements evolve. CIC has also recommended the eventual full integration of the GTC site into the CIC main site, but recognized that this decision would need to be made in consultation with HRSDC and P/T partners following the completion of this summative evaluation. It was further agreed that HRSDC would continue to be the authoritative source for immigrant labour market content on both the GTC-IP and CIC websites.

Full integration of the Portal into the CIC website would likely involveFootnote 9:

  • Incorporating all GTC-IP content and tools into the CIC website;
  • Eliminating the Portal URL (GoingtoCanada.gc.ca) in favour of the CIC website (cic.gc.ca) while still achieving Portal objectives beyond 2010;
  • Maintaining a dedicated labour market section managed by HRSDC. This section would use the URL: WorkinginCanada.gc.ca; and /
  • Reducing labour market content duplication between the CIC and Working in Canada websites.

Due to this staged approach, there is currently a significant level of duplication and overlap in content between the CIC and GTC sites. For example, both the CIC main site and the GTC site hold information on settlement- and immigration-related issues. They both link to the WiC site and the WiC tool. They both link to other external sites that hold information on housing, transportation, health care, etc. They both house CIC tools originally designed exclusively for the GTC site. The CIC main site, however, also contains departmental information, research materials, publications, and other content not found on the GTC-IP, such as information related to refugees, the citizenship process, proactive disclosures, and the application process to work in and immigrate to Canada (e.g., procedures, forms, etc).

1.3.2. Human Resources and Skills Development Canada

Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) is responsible for the Working in Canada (WiC) website and activities which aim to adapt, develop, and integrate targeted information, services and tools that relate to Canada's labour market, job search preparation, and employment opportunities. WiC is comprised of a single team within the Skills and Employment Branch which is responsible for the planning, development, and implementation of the WiC website and tools.

The WiC team focuses on research, site planning, and development (content and tools), partnerships and outreach. A portion of the development activities and technical support is provided through a memorandum of understanding with an HRSDC program area responsible for maintaining and hosting other Web services. Support includes dedicated resources (a proportion of time from three individuals) for programming, site design, and network support contracted by HRSDC.

To secure the sources of information that are collected and disseminated through the Working in Canada Tool, the WiC team works closely with program areas within HRSDC, as well as with government funded projects and provincial and territorial partners. The WiC Team has a particularly close working relationship with the Foreign Credential Recognition (FCR) Program within the Skills and Employment Branch of HRSDC in order to support the Government of Canada's efforts on the Foreign Qualifications Recognition (FWR) Framework.

The Working in Canada website

Launched in 2007 to provide new and prospective immigrants with free and useful labour market and working in Canada information, the WiC website provides authoritative tools and information that people need before and after they arrive in Canada. The 2009 Advisory Panel on Labour Market Information recommended that HRSDC provide a single, state-of-the-art web portal for collating and disseminating labour market information through the WiC website.Footnote 10 Today, the WiC site, along with its French language site, www.travailleraucanada.gc.ca, has expanded in scope from merely providing labour market information to new and prospective immigrants, to being seen as Canada’ primary source of labour market information.Footnote 11

The WiC website provides both static and dynamic content to its users. Static content includes information for job seekers, newcomers, youth and students, older workers, and Aboriginal people. Dynamic content includes the WiC tool (launched in May 2007 and described below) which allows job seekers to select an occupation and a region (e.g., Welder and Related Machine Operator in Saskatchewan) of Canada to produce an assortment of information, including information on license and certification requirements, job opportunities, wages, outlook and prospects, and skills and requirements.

The WiC tool

The WiC tool brings together information and content from disparate sources and databases related to Canada’s labour market, such as the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the Canadian Occupational Projection System, the Foreign Credentials Referral Office, Job Bank, and National Occupational Classifications, among others, to provide consolidated and simplified occupation-specific information and up to 32,000 customized reports (WiC reports).Footnote 12 The labour market information provided for an immigrant client is supplied in a seamless fashion based on an intelligent front-end and specially designed interface in the feeder sites. This allows a user to specify one of several hundred National Occupation Codes (NOCs) and to search across geographic areas. The tool also allows for the add-in of third party content provided by occupational associations that are based on supplementary occupational classifications that are most meaningful to those in the field and that are subsumed in existing NOC occupations.Footnote 13

Another unique feature of the Working in Canada website is that when it is embedded, it can take on the look and feel of a partner’s website. In this fashion, the WiC tool has since been made freely available to other GTC-IP partners by creating a fully operational ‘skinned’Footnote 14 version of the tool.

The WiC widget

In addition to the WiC Tool, HRSDC has developed a WiC Widget. The WiC Widget is a small customizable box that can be shared/placed on partner websites that stream WiC content, including videos (over 200 WiC-related videos are available) and facts to partner websites, while also providing links back to the WiC Tool for select occupations relevant to the partner website (e.g., Professional Engineers Ontario website). Much of the information presented on the partner website is “syndicated” by the WiC Widget – that is to say, the content is pulled from the HRSDC website to the partner websites.

The WiC wiki

The WiC Wiki was developed by HRSDC based on the premise of maintaining effective partnerships, stimulating collaboration and leveraging existing information. The WiC Wiki is a secure, web-based resource available to GTC-IP partners that allows them to post resources (e.g., documents, presentations), read and comment on the resources that have been posted, and stay up-to-date on the latest projects or project ideas.Footnote 15

1.3.3. The provinces and territories

Provincial and territorial portals with their dates of launch:

  • British Columbia: April, 2008
  • Alberta: November, 2007
  • Saskatchewan: April, 2010
  • Manitoba: April, 2005
  • Ontario: March, 2006
  • New Brunswick: November, 2009
  • Prince Edward Island: August, 2007
  • Nova Scotia: March, 2007
  • Newfoundland and Labrador: April, 2009
  • Yukon: April, 2008

A number of provinces and territories have developed and launched their own provincial or territorial portals: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Yukon. Provinces and territories receive funding for the development of their portals through contribution agreements with CIC. The Northwest Territories and Nunavut also have (as of March 2010) contribution agreements with CIC but have not yet launched their portals. Ontario, British Columbia, and Manitoba have separate funding arrangements for their portals. Ontario’s provincial portal is funded by the Ontario government, and the contribution agreement with CIC provides funding for the province’s Municipal Immigration Information Online (MIIO) program (for more information on the MIIO program, please see Appendix B). B.C. and Manitoba portals receive funding through the provisions of the Settlement Services Annexes to their larger Immigration Agreements.

These P/T portals are at various stages of development with some having been fully operational for a number of years, while others have only just launched. The launch dates of each P/T portal is shown below (for a full list of P/T portals and their URLs please consult Appendix C).

In addition to developing their own provincial and territorial portals, four of the provinces (Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador) have provided funding and/or support for the development of municipal portals. The municipal portals were not included in the scope of this evaluation.

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