Eighteen refugees living in Kenyan camps have had long-promised jobs in Canada withdrawn after years of preparation. The cancellations leave the group facing renewed uncertainty in Kakuma and Dadaab.
The refugees had completed medical examinations, language tests and received visas under Canada’s Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot. A long-term care company had offered them positions nearly three years earlier.
The firm stated that the offers were extended in good faith but that the positions were filled during extended processing delays. Juma Shauri, who fled the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2010, said the sudden withdrawal left him feeling disregarded.
Idris Adam, a Sudanese refugee who has lived in Kakuma camp for 14 years, described the difficulty of explaining the change to his daughter. Aid groups assisting the applicants called the decision unacceptable given the advanced stage of the cases.
Some refugees may receive future offers while others have had their applications closed. The episode illustrates the challenges displaced people face when seeking resettlement amid lengthy administrative processes.
