Despite the drop in immigration thresholds, many Ivorians still want to settle on the other side of the Atlantic
Published at 7:00 a.m.
Rafael Miro
Special collaboration
(Abidjan) With its enormous maple leaf flags at the entrance, the hall of the “Access Canada” immigration agency gives itself the false air of an embassy. On a bulletin board, a copy of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and press articles showing François Legault in 2021, at the time when he raised the immigration thresholds.
“Accès Canada”, whose premises are located in one of the towers of the Abidjan business district, is an immigration agency exclusively dedicated to Canada. And it's not the only one: just in the economic metropolis of Côte d'Ivoire, The Press identified around ten similar companies. Walking around the city, we constantly come across signs offering programs to emigrate to Canada, attached to the electricity poles.
In the premises of “Vision Canada”, another agency a few minutes walk away, around fifteen people wait on chairs waiting for an information meeting to take place. They are mostly men in their thirties. The air conditioning is running at full blast, but cannot overcome the crushing heat of this month of November.
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Here, the profiles differ, but the motivation behind the emigration project is often the same. “I want to work,” says Jean-Baptiste Amoh, a 34-year-old cabinetmaker who wants to settle in Quebec, bluntly. “I saw that the population there is aging, and that there is a need for labor in sectors like construction,” he enthuses, explaining that he heard about the Canada on social media.
I will take any opportunity that comes to me, what interests me is to earn a better living.
Mélissa-Héloïse Gbahou, a 37-year-old prison officer.
“I can even adapt to snow!” »
A widow, she says she is unable to take care of her boys aged 7, 11 and 18 in Ivory Coast. “I am ready to leave them here if necessary,” she says spontaneously to The Press. “I don't know if I can get them to come near me, but I can send them money. »
A feeling of “panic”
The announcements from Quebec and Ottawa on immigration during the fall did not go unnoticed in Abidjan. In the room, almost all the candidates have heard about it, on the radio or on social networks. “It created a feeling of panic, mixed with disappointment,” laments Emmanuella Yalo, director of the Abidjan office of Vision Canada, in her office.
“People have the feeling that after Europe, Canada is closing its doors,” added Christian Yopa, immigration consultant and general director of Vision Canada, by videoconference. The company, which has its head office in Laval, has branches in 18 African countries.
PHOTO RAFAEL MIRÓ, COLLABORATION SPÉCIALE
The information point at the Access Canada offices, on the ground floor of a building in downtown Abidjan
For those still in Abidjan, what is causing concern is above all the eight-month suspension of the Regular Skilled Worker Program (PRTQ), which made it possible to obtain a work visa in Quebec. Luc Boni, a 34-year-old mining technician, submitted his application in the spring. “When I saw that it was suspended, I was desperate,” he remembers. But I'm willing to wait. »
“In reality, we cannot be sure of what will happen with these files after eight months,” alarms Christian Yopa. In 2019, the Quebec government eliminated 18,000 pending immigration files. “It puts us in a delicate situation, because we charged for a service which ultimately was of no use. »
An exorbitant price
Going through immigration procedures is very expensive, especially when you go through an agency. At Vision Canada, support costs from 2 to 5 million CFA francs (from 4,600 to $11,400 CAN), with no guarantee of success. By comparison, the minimum wage in Ivory Coast is 75,000 CFA francs ($171 CAN) per month. “For the moment, I have spent 1.4 million CFA francs,” laments Luc Boni, who remains registered despite his pending file.
PHOTO RAFAEL MIRÓ, SPECIAL COLLABORATION THE PRESS
All over Abidjan, various immigration agencies put up posters offering programs to work or study in Canada.
It is of course possible to complete your immigration procedures yourself, directly on the Canadian government website. To pay application fees, take language tests and obtain recognition of diplomas, you still have to pay a few hundred dollars.
“I took the steps without an agency, but I had to get help from friends to understand everything,” explains Frank-Arnaud Goulihiri, a 32-year-old driver, in his taxi. Exhausted by the long nights of work and the congestion in Abidjan, he wishes to follow training in Quebec to become a beneficiary attendant.
Unfortunately, his efforts to obtain a study visa have dragged on since 2023, and he has still not had his way. “It may never happen, but I still have hope,” he explains as he crosses the city’s port. “You know, for us, it’s a dream to go to Canada. »
