New Telegraph-Admin 
The terrifying, true-life tales of fellow Nigerians facing the pains of poverty, joblessness and homelessness in some cities in Canada, with some of them battling for space along the streets, in emergency shelters and worse still, in cemeteries deserves urgent intervention from the Federal Government.
The root causes of their travails are traceable to lack of stable jobs, the loss of their homes, all because they could not keep up with the high rents, while some are dropping out of colleges because they can no longer afford the new semester fees.
But what are the factors attracting Nigerians to Canada? That is the million-naira question. Over the decades Canada has become known for its safety, political stability and universal healthcare system.
That is in addition to a clean environment. Nigerians migrating to Canada have steadily climbed in recent years. The number of Nigerian permanent residents (PRs) in the North American nation rose from 5,445 in 2015 to 17,460 in 2023. It was reported that from January to June 2023, about 10,180 Nigerians moved to Canada.
And according to data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, an additional 1,905 Nigerians permanently reside in Canada as of April 2024, its highest since March 2023.
But the Canadian government is seeking the expertise of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to help it stem the tide of illegal migration by Nigerian citizens into its country. Painfully, thousands of Nigerians there have found themselves in survival mode; hardly able to meet their daily needs of raising funds for feeding and shelter because their existence is tied to the ease of doing business.
While there are other opportunities brokered by their attainment of legitimate resident status, many Canadabased Nigerians have been denied such privileges. According to the report in Quebec, one of the country’s largest cities, commissioned by the Quebec Province’s Health Department, it found that “visible” homelessness in Quebec increased by about 44 per cent between April 2018 and October 2022, and by 33 per cent in Montreal.
It has been discovered over the past decade that the number of people living in emergency shelters, or on the streets surged in all regions of Quebec and rose most sharply outside Montreal.
The analysis by the province’s public health institute says Quebec is witnessing a “regionalisation of street homelessness,” as the number of people living outside has become increasingly significant in regions such as Mauricie– Centre-du-Quebec, Estrie and the Outaouais.
The housing situation in Canada, considered to be the second largest in the world after Russia, is such that, in January this year, the country revealed that it was considering limiting the number of international student visas, including those issued to Nigerians, as part of solutions to its housing shortages.
The current situation should serve as a clarion call on the government to provide the enabling environment that would act as a catalyst to boost industrial production, provide jobs to the beleaguered youths…
This was according to Sean Fraser, the country’s Minister for Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities, who noted that the sharp rise in the number of students was putting pronounced pressure on some housing markets. So, what has been the Federal Government’s response to the challenge of Nigerians battling for survival in a foreign land?
According to Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairperson of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), warnings have been given to Nigerians against traveling abroad without proper documentation. She spoke when she visited some stranded Nigerians who violated Canada’s immigration laws.
The Nigerians, mostly youths, are currently living in a shelter meant for asylum seekers in Brampton. In a video posted on NIDCOM’s X account, Dabiri-Erewa said the situation “really is not quite a pleasant sight to behold”. “We pray and hope that they get out of this situation,” describing the majority of the asylum seekers as “young vibrant Nigerians”. She used the opportunity to thank the Nigerians who have been supporting the illegal migrants, adding that the commission donated some items and provided counselling to the stranded citizens.
She also prayed for those affected to survive it all while advising others not to fall into similar traps. That is the crux of the matter. Much as the average Nigerian back home understands her position on the matter, the mistake has been made by the illegal immigrants. What is needed therefore, are urgent measures aimed at getting them back home and rehabilitating them.
It also serves as a challenge to the federal and state governments to rethink and act decisively on their economic policies to do away with anti-people aspects that are fuelling mass poverty, hunger, joblessness m, hopelessness and of course, the ‘japa syndrome ‘. The current situation should serve as a clarion call on the government to provide the enabling environment that would act as catalyst to boost industrial production, provide jobs to the beleaguered youths and stimulate food security.
That is, instead of taxing the pauperised populace – providing both security and welfare is of course, the constitutional mandate of government. On their part, the youths themselves should display circumspection when appraising all manner of publicised opportunities, promised incentives painting other countries as better off than Nigeria all in the bid to lure them to travel abroad, only to move from the proverbial frying pan to fire.
