Posted on Tuesday, March 18, 2025
Back to Search

Kitchener, Ontario – The City of Kitchener is developing its first-ever Municipal Newcomer Strategy to improve quality of life for newcomers through better access to City services, events and programs.  

With 30 per cent of Kitchener’s population born outside of Canada and 71 per cent of newcomers actively employed (Statistics Canada), newcomers are making vital contributions to our local economy every day. This new municipal strategy will take a more targeted and deliberate approach to supporting those connections and fostering more opportunities for economic prosperity, cultural inclusion and active community participation. 

 "As someone whose family moved to Canada more than five decades ago, the newcomer experience has always been a priority for me and given the immigration trends across Canada and within our community over the past 10 years, it is timely for the City of Kitchener to turn our attention to how to best support newcomers in our community,” said Mayor Berry Vrbanovic. “The development of the Municipal Newcomer Strategy aligns with our strategic priority to Foster a Caring City Together and will also play a crucial role in enhancing Kitchener’s economic resilience by leveraging the potential of newcomers in business creation, workforce sustainability, and long-term economic growth.” 

 The approach for the development of a Municipal Newcomer Strategy, presented in a staff report to Council earlier this week, recommends the strategy be shaped by the voices of the community through extensive engagement with newcomers and through collaboration with newcomer-serving organizations, to ensure the strategy is experience-based and data-driven. Throughout development of the strategy, the focus will be on the experiences and needs of newcomers who have immigrated to Canada within the last 10 years. The end goal is to build actionable and achievable recommendations to help create a welcoming and supportive environment where newcomers can thrive and contribute meaningfully to the life of our community and our City’s economy.   

 “Through our research, internal conversations, and early discussions with the community, we've learned that the City is already doing a lot to improve newcomer experiences," said Olabukonla Mise, Project Manager for the Municipal Newcomer Strategy. "This strategy is about building on those efforts — working closely with the community and community-serving organizations to create a plan that reflects the real needs, experiences, and aspirations of newcomers in Kitchener.” 

To guide the development of this strategy, the City is establishing a Municipal Newcomer Strategy Working Group made up of community members and representatives from newcomer-serving organizations, to help shape a more caring Kitchener, build connections, and contribute to meaningful change. This working group will play a key role, through ongoing collaboration with staff as strategy development is underway, to ensure that the strategy reflects the diverse experiences and needs of newcomers in Kitchener.  

The City is seeking passionate individuals (ages 18+) who have arrived in Canada within the last 10 years, who are interested in sharing their experiences, input and ideas to affect meaningful change in our community. The working group will meet in-person once a month from May to December 2025.  

Those interested in participating in the Municipal Newcomer Strategy Working Group can submit an online application or can receive and submit a paper application at any of the City’s community centres or at City Hall. The deadline to apply is Sunday March 30, 2025.   

To learn more about the role and responsibilities of the Municipal Newcomer Strategy Working Group, or to apply, visit: www.kitchener.ca/volunteer.   

 

For more information, contact:  

Bethany Rowland 
Corporate Communications & Marketing Associate   
City of Kitchener   

Bethany.rowland@kitchener.ca  
Media@kitchener.ca   

 

Nasreen 

Strategic Communications Officer 
Office of the Mayor and Council 
City of Kitchener 
nasreen@kitchener.ca  
(M) - 226-753-6082