NEWS RELEASE

EMBARGOED UNTIL SEPTEMBER 7, 2007 – 10:00AM

September 6, 2007

IMMIGRATION.WINDSOR-ESSEX.INFO
TO SHOWCASE REGION TO THE WORLD

Windsor, ON – The Connecting Windsor-Essex™ Smart Community Portal has added a new feature to showcase Windsor and Essex County as a great place to live, work, learn and invest for newcomers.

“Canada's New Government wants newcomers to succeed with their new lives in Canada,” said Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada. “And one of the best ways to help get local information about language training, job training and other settlement services is through the Internet. We've committed $10 million over the next four years to assist municipalities, such as Windsor-Essex, launch their own web portals and help newcomers and their families.”

"The introduction of this new website translates into a greater recognition and opportunity for newcomers from around the world to discover that Windsor and Essex County offers a diversity to support every facet of family life,” said Essex County Warden Nelson Santos. “The provincial and federal governments’ support of this initiative allows our Region to open our door to greater success in the future, and will allow us to not only sustain our culturally diverse communities, but will allow us to build greater capacity for a truly accepting and inclusive community.”

“Newcomers bring global experience to Ontario,” said Sandra Pupatello, MPP for Windsor-West. “Windsor-Essex’s new portal and the province’s OntarioImmigration.ca site will help put our community on the global map for prospective immigrants and newcomers.”
“Windsor Essex is open to newcomers and this new website will ensure we attract skills and investment to our region,” said Dwight Duncan, MPP for Windsor-Tecumseh. "This new resource is another important tool that will help make it easier for newcomers to learn about the opportunities and benefits of settling in our community.”

“The Ontario government is investing in the future of the Windsor-Essex region,” added Bruce Crozier, MPP for Essex.

This site (immigration.windsor-essex.info) was developed with funding support from the Province of Ontario through the Canada Ontario Immigration Agreement to help newcomers settle and integrate quickly into the province. The province has invested $227,300 in the Windsor-Essex County portal. This funding is part of $3.6M invested to date, under the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement.

The Windsor-Essex immigration portal will link to the province’s website for newcomers, www.OntarioImmigration.ca. The immigration and settlement web pages provide direct links to many other online resources, including those offered by the Ontario and Canadian governments, and by community agencies serving newcomers in Windsor-Essex.

OntarioImmigration.ca provides up-to-date information for newcomers and potential immigrants on everything from towns and cities, to labour market and skills accreditation. Since its launch in 2006, the site has received more than 15 million hits from people seeking information on living and working in Ontario.

The first five cities to be showcased are London, Toronto, Windsor/Essex, Ottawa and Greater Sudbury. The next wave of municipalities will include: Waterloo Region, Sault Ste. Marie, Lambton County, Peel Region, Chatham-Kent, York Region, Niagara Region and Brantford.

The Connecting Windsor-Essex™ Smart Community Portal is an official source for key information, services and contacts within the region, and has content organized under eight key theme areas, ranging from government to cultural information.

The Connecting Windsor-Essex™ initiative is making our community one of the world’s most connected regions and uniting diverse organizations and individuals to champion the cause of connecting people “at the speed of life.”

Contacts:

Kristina Verner
University of Windsor
Centre for Smart Community Innovation
(519) 253-3000 x 4560

Rick Byun
Minister’s Office
416-325-3460

Michel Payen-Dumont
Communications Branch
416-314-7010

immigration.windsor-essex.info
www.ontarioimmigration.ca

NOTE: THE SITE WILL BE OPERATIONAL
AT 9:00AM ET ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2007

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