Jamaican professionals, skill workers flock to Canada

Jamaica continues to experience significant brain drain losing its professionals and skilled workers to Canada. Jamaica had the largest number of migrants to the North American country in 2023.

Of the 4,340 Jamaicans granted permanent resident status in Canada last year, 78 per cent, or 3,390, were in the working-age population of 15-64 years, according to the Planning Institute of Jamaica’s 2023 Economic and Social Survey Jamaica.

The 30-34 age group had the largest proportion of admissions of permanent residents from Jamaica, accounting for 13.5 per cent. Jamaicans from the 0-4 and 60 and over age groups constituted a small proportion of migrants (4.9 per cent).

The report, which looks at developments within the Jamaican society and economy, said 6.9 per cent of those who migrated to Canada were in the professionals, senior officials and technicians’ category – the largest proportion of permanent migrants.

This was followed by service, shop and market sales workers at 1.9 per cent. The report said that 87.2 per cent of the permanent migrants’ occupations were unknown.

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“There isn’t anything unusual about migrants being sort of cream of the crop. The very essence of migrants is that they are a little more ambitious than other persons. Typically, people remain where they are. So upward mobility doesn’t take place to a great extent in any society at all,” sociologist Dr Orville Taylor said of the latest development.

He said that people who migrate typically have the requisites and prerequisites to do so for countries such as Canada and the United States (US).

The report did not note the figure for Jamaicans who migrated to the US last year. However, available data from United States Citizenship and Immigration Services indicate that 20,200 Jamaicans were naturalized between October 2022 and September 2023.

Jamaica listed as seventh among the top 10 countries from which citizens were naturalized for 2023.

The report said the US remained the main destination of choice for Jamaican migrants, relative to Canada and the United Kingdom.