Three-Year agreement is one of the largest
standalone gifts supporting newcomers in Canada's history*
TORONTO, June 10, 2021 /CNW/ - Scotiabank today
announced its landmark commitment to Windmill Microlending with a
donation of $2.5 million. The
donation – one of the largest of its kind in Canadian history –
will be directed toward programs that provide professionally
skilled women immigrants with career mentoring and financial
support.
Scotiabank's gift is part of its commitment to supporting
newcomers to Canada by helping
them feel at home through meaningful employment, which enables them
to add to the prosperity and social fabric of their
communities.
"The majority of immigrants arrive in Canada with the expectation of a better life
and future, and Windmill Microlending's primary goal is to help
them realize that," says Dan Rees,
Group Head, Canadian Banking at Scotiabank. "Scotiabank is
committed to serving our diverse communities across Canada, and we are honoured to be named a
Transformational Partner with an organization that truly values how
essential immigrants are to Canada's future prosperity. We believe our
commitment to Windmill, as a key investment of our ScotiaRISE
initiative, will make a difference in strengthening the economic
resilience of newcomers and contribute to the long-term growth of
this country."
Between January and March of 2020, 82% of Canada's population growth came from
immigration¹ However labour market growth did not mirror
this statistic, as skilled immigrants are often ineligible to work
in Canada due to a lack of
Canadian credentials. Gaining access to capital in order to obtain
these credentials is almost impossible without Canadian credit
history or collateral, and the situation is even more challenging
for immigrant women, who face greater employment barriers and earn
less money than both male immigrants and Canadian-born women.
"This is a landmark donation to the immigrant-serving sector in
Canada, which will enable
thousands of skilled immigrant women to achieve professional
success and help thousands of families to escape poverty," said
Claudia Hepburn, CEO of Windmill
Microlending. "It's difficult to express adequately our gratitude
and excitement as we think about the impact that Scotiabank's
transformational gift will have on skilled immigrant women and
Canada."
Scotiabank's commitment to Windmill Microlending is a signature
piece of ScotiaRISE, the Bank's 10-year, $500 million initiative to promote economic
resilience among disadvantaged groups. Through ScotiaRISE,
Scotiabank is supporting programs and partnering with organizations
across its footprint that provide the tools people need to improve
their education and employment prospects, adapt to changing
circumstances, and increase the likelihood of financial
success.
In addition, Scotiabank recently announced its support of the
Federal Government's initiative to support economic recovery
through increased immigration targets, which will grant over 90,000
temporary residents considered essential workers permanent
residency, advancing their economic participation and integration
into the Canadian economy.
For more information please
visit https://windmillmicrolending.org.
About Scotiabank
Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our
purpose: "for every future", we help our customers, their families
and their communities achieve success through a broad range of
advice, products and services, including personal and commercial
banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and
investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of
approximately 90,000 employees and assets of approximately
$1.1 trillion (as at April 30, 2021), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto
Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS).
For more information, please visit http://www.scotiabank.com and
follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankViews.
About Windmill Microlending
As Canada's largest microlending
not-for-profit for skilled immigrants and refugees, Windmill
addresses underemployment of internationally trained professionals
across Canada. By offering affordable loans up to
$15,000 to pay for the credentials,
licensing, training or professional development our clients are
able to achieve career success and convert potential into
prosperity for themselves and for Canada. Founded in 2005, Windmill Microlending
is a registered charity supported by donors, government, sponsors
and granting agencies. Visit
http://www.windmillmicrolending.org for more information.
*When compared to immigrant serving organizations and charities
with immigrant-oriented programming, as per Canada Revenue Agency
and publicly reported information sources.
References
¹ https://www.cicnews.com/2020/06/over-80-of-canadas-population-growth-from-immigration-0614770.html#gs.z6srrn
SOURCE Scotiabank