Citizenship and Immigration Canada has launched a website promoting innovations in the as­sessment and recognition of for­eign worker qualifications. The International Qualification Network (IQN) website serves as a virtual space for employers, reg­ulatory bodies, governments and organizations serving immigrants to capitalize on promising quali­fication assessment and recogni­tion practices.

“The Government of Canada is committed to improving the pro­cess of recognizing foreign worker qualifications, and the IQN web-site will help find solutions that will allow immigrants to integrate better into the Canadian labour market,” said Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney.

Through the IQN website, stakeholders can share effective evaluation tools and practices, studies, pilot projects, reports and videos and post information on events, such as workshops and conferences. The website was created with the guidance of the IQN Advisory Council, a group of 20 partners and stake­holders who represent various provinces, employers and post­secondary education institutions from across Canada.
The information posted on the IQN will benefit everyone in all jurisdictions across Canada. Examples of innovative foreign qualifications practices include:

The Registered Nurses Pro­fessional Development Centre in Nova Scotia posted a profile of its program to assist internation­ally educated health-care profes­sionals in getting their credentials recognized and integrating into the province’s labour market. The profile serves as a model for other nursing associations in oth­er provinces to design their own program.

The Multi-jurisdictional Mid­wifery Bridging Project (MMBP) posted an outline of its eight-month bridging program for in­ternationally educated midwives who want to practice in British Columbia, Alberta, the Northwest Territories, Saskatchewan, Mani­toba and Nova Scotia.

The outline provides valuable information to foreign midwives and organizations assisting im­migrants.
With the creation of the IQN website, the Government of Canada is delivering on a two-year commitment to support pro­vincial, territorial and stakeholder
efforts to improve international credential recognition through the Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.
The IQN website is adminis­tered by the Foreign Credentials Referral Office, a branch of Citi­zenship and Immigration Canada that offers referral services in Can­ada and overseas to immigrants, and develops tools for employers and regulatory bodies so they can help immigrants integrate into the Canadian workforce.
Visit the website at http://www. credentials-competences.gc. ca.