London's Sudanese community scrambles to apply for new program to bring relatives to safety

Members of London's Sudanese community say it will be a challenge to get relatives out of the country to safety in Canada through a new government program. 

On Tuesday Canada began to accept applications from people fleeing a war in the eastern African nation. The conflict has led to the displacement of more than eight million people from their homes.

The program is intended to create a new pathway to permanent resident status in Canada for people affected by the conflict. To quality, those intending to come to Canada must have a family member in Canada sponsor them. 

The program is limited to 3,250 people, a number that has drawn criticism from Sudanese groups who say it's a tiny number given the extreme need for help. 

CBC London reached out to members of the local Sudanese community Tuesday, but were told many people were too busy preparing their applications to speak. 

Income requirements a barrier

Londoner Gamal Tabidi is originally from Sudan. He has family members who've fled the war and are living in Cairo where there are unable to work legally.

Tabidi, who drives a cab, believes the program is well-intentioned but too restrictive to help a large number of people affected by the war. 

"Something is better than nothing," he said. "But this program will help very few people because of the financial requirements." 

Those requirements include proof from the sponsor family member in Canada — referred to as the "anchor" in government documents — has to demonstrate enough income to support the person, or people, who are brought to Canada. 

The program's financial requirements are laid out on the Government of Canada website. For Tabidi to bring one family member over he would need to demonstrate an income of just under $58,000. 

An "anchor" who can't demonstrate the required income can qualify to bring over a relative if they can show a certain level of savings. Sponsoring one relative requires proof of $9,900 in the bank. Sponsoring two people requires $14,950 in savings, and the numbers ramp up from there.

"I'm already helping relatives there financially," said Tabidi. "The help is very hard for me to do." 

Canadian Immigration Minister Marc Miller said the program could be adjusted based on the uptake. He also said Canada can't be the only destination for refugees of the war.