CIMM – French-Speaking Students from Africa – November 29, 2022

Key Messages

IRCC has made efforts to attract eligible students in Africa and therefore increase the acceptance rates, by working with outreach partners as well as at public events. IRCC offices located in Africa participate in events such as EduCanada and EduQuebec and regularly host webinars to explain the study permit application process and requirements.
In 2021, the approval rates from African countries were relatively similar between applicants from traditionally-English speaking countries (33%) and French-speaking countries (27%).
Between January 1, 2022 and October 31, 2022, this trend has improved with approval rates of 39% and 33%, respectively.
Overall approval rates for students from Africa have increased from 30% in 2021 to 36% in 2022 (up to October 31, 2022).

Supplementary Messages

IRCC is examining how program guidance could be adjusted to provide officers with more flexibility to use discretion when assessing financial resources, particularly in regions where cultural and banking norms differ significantly from Canada. However, the Department understands that international students that struggle to support themselves in Canada are at greater vulnerability. Any changes to how financial resources are assessed will be balanced against our efforts to better protect students.

IRCC has also been advancing initiatives to find and fight unconscious biases and racism in our regional offices in Africa for more than three years, including these activities:
- Unconscious bias training for decision-makers and ensuring all courses include Anti-Racism and GBA+ lenses including specific modules focused on bias.
- Cultural training on Africa and African clients designed to ensure that decision-makers are aware of the opportunities that African countries present, especially for francophone migration. This training is mandatory for all IRCC decision-makers prior to working on Africa caseloads.
- Anti Racism and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion training has been delivered to all managers working abroad in sessions that took place in November 2021 and May 2022.
- IRCC’s International Network, responsible for our operations abroad, launched a Quality Assurance Framework in March 2022, that includes random, systematic and targeted activities to assess the extent to which our processes are compliant, consistent, efficient and bias-aware.
- An expanded footprint in Africa (with officers now located in Addis Ababa and Yaoundé) has helped improve our knowledge of local conditions which increases officer comfort with processing and approving applications. This expanded footprint also helps with promoting studies in Canada, and helping clients avoid immigration scams and unreliable consultants.
These efforts have started to bear fruit. Approval rates for African students have increased from 30% in 2021 to 36% in 2022, using data available up until October 31, 2022.