Gov't issues more than 900 permanent visas for Syrian refugees, commits $100M to help overseas

The federal government has committed $100 million in humanitarian aid to the UN Refugee Agency to help the organization address the refugee crisis overseas.

The federal government has so far processed more than 900 permanent residence visas for Syrian refugees, and committed to sending $100 million in humanitarian aid to the UN Refugee Agency, to help the organization address the refugee crisis overseas.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada said the first group of Syrian refugees with those visas will travel to Canada on a military plane, and the government will also look into the option of leased planes thereafter.

Meanwhile, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie Marie-Claude Bibeau said $100 million will be used “to address urgent humanitarian needs” among those displaced from Syria and neighbouring countries in the Middle East.

The money will go toward providing food, clothing, medicine, schooling and other necessities for refugees in Europe, Syria, Iraq and Egypt.

Of the $100 million, $10 million has been set aside to help the UN High Commissioner for Refugees register and pre-select refugees for resettlement. “It will mean an increased chance of being resettled abroad, not just in Canada, but in a number of countries around the world,” Bibeau said.

The $100 million in aid was included in the Liberals’ election platform, and will be dispersed to the UNHCR as quickly as it’s needed, Bibeau said.

The funds come as the Canadian government prepares to settle 25,000 Syrian refugees by February, 2016.

Bibeau said that, in addition to taking in refugees, Canada “can also make a difference in the region” by offering money to help those waiting to be resettled.

Bibeau added that the federal government will match Canadians’ contributions to the Syrian Emergency Relief Fund, dollar-for-dollar, until the end of the year.

An estimated 4 million Syrians have been displaced by that country’s civil war, and the conflict with the Islamic State.