The first African country to show up on a Canadian census was South Africa. In 1901, the census showed that 128 people emigrated from South Africa. African immigration rose in the 1960s when Canada changed its immigration policy.
Between 1996 and 2006, the African countries with the most immigrants to Canada were Morocco, South Africa and Algeria. Almost 40,000 immigrants were from Morocco and South Africa while 32,000 immigrants were from Algeria.
According to the 1996 and 2001 census, 77-1/2 percent of African immigrants moved to Ontario or Quebec.
Many African immigrants in Canada are doctors from South Africa. More than 1,500 doctors in Canada received their initial degree in South Africa before immigrating to Canada. In some provinces, the ratio of South African doctors to doctors of other nationalities is 1 to 5.
The requirements for immigrating to Canada from Africa vary from country to country. However, most prospective immigrants have the option to apply as a skilled worker, Canadian experience class (for people with work or education experience in Canada), investors and the self-employed, and family members. Some opportunities exist for immigrants to be nominated by a specific province.
Immigrating to Canada takes an average of 13 to 16 months.
