As part of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) commitment to deliver high quality services to newcomers and refugee’s, IRCC plans to launch a Call for Proposals (CFP) in 2024 for the Settlement and Resettlement Assistance programs to provide services for another five years.
National consultations conducted early in 2023 had over 1,300 partners and stakeholders and informed key priority areas to be addressed. IRCC’s priorities and parameters for CFP 2024 will ensure that the program continues to offer the “right service, to the right client, at the right time”.
An ATIP obtained by CIC Updates notes that targeted improvements to the Settlement Program are grouped into overarching themes:
- Increase consistency: implement a more nationally consistent approach to service delivery and ensuring that clients with the most barriers and complex needs have the supports they need
- Promote and facilitate collaboration: co-plan and share information with other orders of government to support effective and efficient settlement program delivery
- Increase capacity of community partners: encouraging the co-design of programming with clients and strengthening the community connections volunteer capacity
- Flexibility: ensuring that the program remains flexible and can be adapted to the characteristics and specific needs of clients and regions, while recognizing the role of provinces and territories in co-planning to support the settlement and integration of newcomers
CFP 2024 call for proposals for four dedicated streams
CFP 2024 will also solicit proposals for four dedicated streams, the Resettlement Assistance Program, the Francophone Integration Pathway, Equity (capacity building) and Service Delivery Improvement.
CFP 2024 will build on the expansion of the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) that has been underway since 2019 by seeking proposals to extend the program to four additional areas of the country. It also hopes to ensure that the RAP has more consistent capacity to serve French-speaking clients and will embed a refugee pathway to ensure consistent transition for refugees accessing RAP for support.
The Francophone Integration Pathway will be consolidated within the Settlement Program’s terms and conditions. Some proposed measures include increasing capacity of organizations that deliver services to Francophone newcomers and setting a minimum funding target for Francophone programming in each region.
The CFP also seeks to enhance the settlement sector’s capacity to create more inclusive, equitable services for diverse newcomers. With an allocation of up to $25 million annually, the stream is designed to support organizations that have historically not received funding under the Settlement and Resettlement programs.
Finally, the CFP 2024 is an essential step in leveraging the use of digital and hybrid delivery of services and promoting testing and research of innovative approaches to improve service delivery.
About Canada’s Settlement Services
IRCC spends some $2 billion annually on settlement services across Canada (including a separate settlement grant to Quebec). The purpose of this funding is to allow immigrant-serving organizations to deliver programs and services that support the settlement and integration of those who meet IRCC’s eligibility criteria. Broadly speaking, IRCC-funded services are available to permanent residents, protected persons, and some temporary residents.
To obtain IRCC funding, settlement providers respond to IRCC’s CFP by demonstrating how they will support newcomers. There are currently nearly 1,300 locations across Canada where eligible newcomers can receive IRCC-funded supports, and they are listed on IRCC’s website.