Toronto Consulate to look into needs of international students

Toronto Consulate to look into needs of international students

Consul General Angelica Escalona of the Philippine Consulate General in Toronto speaks at the Filipino-Canadian Professionals Convention 2023 in Vaughn, Ont. on October 28 2023.
Photo: Veronica C. Silva

As number of Pinoys with study permits increased

November 15, 2023

By Veronica C. Silva

LJI Reporter

The Philippine Reporter

TORONTO – The Philippine Consulate in Toronto is organizing a convention for Filipino international students to look into the type of assistance that the Philippine government may provide them here.

This is in view of latest data showing that the Philippines is one of the top source countries for international students.

Toronto Consul General Angelica Escalona told The Philippine Reporter that they are organizing a big convention for international students that will be held in the first quarter of 2024.   

Immigration Minister Marc Miller speaks at the Filipino-Canadian Professionals Convention 2023 in Vaughn, Ont. on October 28 where he notes that the Philippines is one of the top sources of international students.
Photo: Veronica C. Silva

In a recent convention of Filipino-Canadian professionals held in Vaughn in October, an event co-organized with the Toronto Consulate, Immigration Minister Marc Miller (Member of Parliament for Ville-Marie-Le Sud-Ouest-Île-des-Sœurs) told the audience that the Philippines is one of the top sources of international students, aside from the fact that it has been one of the largest sources of immigrants.

He cited July 2023 data showing that there were already more than 17,000 study permit holders from the Philippines.

On the website of the Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the latest monthly data indicate that as of September 2023, there are already almost 25,000 international study permit holders from the Philippines, almost the same number for the full year of 2022 at 25,270 (see table).

Study permit data are almost like immigration data. The top sources of immigrants to Canada — China, India, the Philippines – are also the top source countries for study permit holders. China and India have long been top source countries for international students, according to Global Affairs Canada data. But IRCC data show a marked increase of students from the Philippines since after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Escalona said the Philippine diplomatic posts in Canada are aware of the growing number of international students and that meeting their needs is their top priority.

“We do note the concerns (of international students) and have been meeting with various stakeholders. We know with the rising costs, it’s very hard for them,” she said. “We are partnering with the community and other government agencies here (in Canada) to see what can be done.”

She said that while information sharing through seminars, workshops, orientations are already being done Filipino community organizations, the planned convention for next year will be big with more sharing of information and “of course, giving the message that the Consulate will always be there to support them.”

Javier Jardeleza, an international student and member of Migrante Ontario, told TPR that among the chief concerns of international students are housing and food security. On what the foreign posts can do, he said international students need help on finding information on low-cost rentals and food banks. Other concerns of international students are healthcare, which may be limited even if it is included in their school fees, and protection from possible scammers. International students who have become undocumented need help with repatriation, he added.

One of the meetings that the consulate had with stakeholders happened in September. It was attended by an alliance of community groups and associations that have been vigilantly fighting for migrants rights and protection. Migrante Ontario, a member of Migrante Canada, and Malaya Movement were in attendance in this meeting.

Leny Rose Simbre, chair of Migrante Ontario, told TPR that during the meeting – with representatives of the labour

attaché and Department of Migrant Workers – they have asked the consulate to work with them who are working at the grassroots level. She said international students are coming to advocacy groups, settlement agencies, and Filipino community organizations for assistance.

Indo-Pacific Strategy

Working with Pinoys on the ground, Simbre is not surprised with the growing number of Pinoy international students coming to Canada.

“The promise of Indo-Pacific Strategy is very appealing to international students, especially to Filipino students, because the student pathway is one of the simplest pathways to enter Canada today,” she said.

She was referring to the 2022 strategy of Canada to tap into the trillion-dollar economic powerhouse of 40 countries and economies in the region.

Aside from fast processing times relative to other immigration pathways, Simbre noted that recruiters in the Philippines are very good at marketing to international students.

According to the government of Canada, processing time for student permits can be as short as 20 calendar days – for the Student Direct Stream (SDS) — or 11 weeks. To qualify for the SDS, an applicant must be a resident of certain countries, and the list includes the Philippines.

International students in Canada, which number half a million, are contributing billions of dollars to the Canadian economy.