AMBM President and Reeve of the Rural Municipality of La Broquerie, Mr. Ivan Normandeau, issued this statement following the announcement of the new Advisory Council on Economic Immigration and Settlement by the Government of Manitoba:
This announcement was made on Thursday, July 13th, 2023 by the Minister of Labor and Immigration, Mr. Jon Reyes.
The AMBM welcomes the creation of this new advisory body to the Minister, which will be responsible for contributing to the implementation of the recommendations of the Immigration Advisory Council (IAC) and the development of a provincial economic immigration and settlement strategy, in addition to examining and providing advice on any issues deemed relevant within its mandate. This new council will undoubtedly enhance Manitoba’s bilingual character, while promoting greater regionalization of our immigration.
As such, we applaud the appointment of Mr. Justin Johnson, Chief Executive Officer of the AMBM, as a member of this new Advisory Council.
Since 2020, Mr. Johnson has collaborated with numerous partners in the immigration continuum to create winning conditions for the reception, settlement and inclusion of newcomers to our municipalities and our province. In particular, he coordinated the development and led the implementation of the first Strategy to Support Economic Immigration in Manitoba’s Bilingual Municipalities, as well as creating Manitoba’s first Municipal Economic Immigration Forum, held in Winnipeg on March 16th and 17th, 2023.
A proud French-speaking Red River Métis, and originally from Lorette, Mr. Johnson is highly motivated and inspired by the success of economic immigration in bilingual municipalities and throughout the province. When it comes to immigration, he reflects Louis Riel’s vision and dream of seeing Manitoba become a welcoming and diverse land that celebrates its cultural heritage while practicing harmonious coexistence, as well as a land of prosperity and economic opportunity where life is good, in both rural and urban settings.
We are confident that his expertise and commitment as a member of the Advisory Council on Economic Immigration and Settlement will make Mr. Johnson an important contributor to successful bilingual and regional economic immigration, to the benefit of all Manitobans.
The Association of Manitoba Bilingual Municipalities (AMBM) is the voice of bilingual municipal leadership in the province of Manitoba. It represents 15 local governments committed to providing services in both official languages to their citizens. Together, these municipalities represent the majority of Manitoba’s population.
Manitoba’s bilingual municipal leadership is also at the helm of the AMBM Group, a consortium of three complementary organizations: the AMBM, the Economic Development Council for Manitoba Bilingual Municipalities (CDEM) and Eco-West Canada (EWC), which has specialized in the green economy since 2008. These three complementary organizations actively contribute to the development, vitality and sustainability of the province’s Official Language Minority Communities (OLMCs).
Information: Office of the Chief Executive Officer (B-CDD), 204-289-4077, [email protected].
