The Canadian government’s goal of hosting skilled newcomers to Canada remains for 2023 and beyond, as there are nearly one million vacancies and increased demand for overseas workers through its skilled immigration programs.
Canada is expected to shift away from a focus on Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores and begin conducting express entry draws that target foreign nationals working in specific occupations or those with specific language skills/educational backgrounds as early as Q1 2023.
This will help the country better focus on addressing specific areas of labour market needs and weaknesses.
Effect on Canada: The end goal of these targeted draws is to strengthen Canada’s labour market and hopefully
- “see a potential increase of retention rates amongst people who settle in specific communities because people are coming in where they know they have opportunities because that was the basis of their invitation to apply”, according to Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser.
Recent changes: The National Occupation Classification (NOC) 2016 system in Canada was recently replaced with the NOC 2021 system, which combines training, education, experience, and responsibilities- TEER
With this new system, Canada will be better at forecasting its labor market, forecasting occupations, examining the supply and demand for labor, and providing more specialized job training and skill development to both Canadians and foreigners.
These adjustments will ultimately help Canada attract more employable immigrants with specialized skills to better meet the needs of particular regional job markets, particularly in industries with the greatest labor shortage.
For Nigerians: Nigerian professionals in the healthcare sector, technology field, and scientific areas will still be in high demand in Canada. Those in skilled occupations in demand are: truck drivers, welders, and industrial electricians will therefore need to position themselves to utilize this opportunity.
Based on the targeted Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) draws across Canada, the top 10 positions in-demand careers for 2023 are registered nurses, web developers, electrical engineers, truck drivers, welders, veterinarians, licensed practical nurses, industrial electricians, pharmacists, and accountants.
Also, language skills are another focus for immigration. Therefore Nigerians interested in migrating to Canada may need to commence training in the French language in particular, as it is one of Canada’s official languages.
