About Canada

Location

• Canada is on the continent of North America.
• The country stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.
• The Arctic Ocean is to the north and the United States of America is south.
• Most of Canada is north of the 49th parallel of latitude as the 49th parallel was chosen as a border from the Great Lakes to the west coast.

The Political Climate

Canada has a democratic system of government that consists of two main levels: the Federal or national govenment and the Provincial Government. As such, there is a National Parliment in Ottawa, Ontario which consists of the House of Commons (elected) and the Senate (appointed), and a Provincial Legislature in the capital of each Province. The leader of the majority party in the House of Commons in the Federal Government is the Prime Minister of the country. Stephen Harper is presently the Prime Minister of Canada. The leader of each Provincial or Territorial Government is called the Premier.

Canada is a politically-stable parliamentary democracy, with the seventh largest market-based, free-enterprise economy in the Western world. Canadians enjoy one of the highest standards of living in the world.

The federal government has primary control over immigration policy, but recently it has delegated some of that authority to the 10 provinces and three territories. This increases the chances for immigrants to come to Canada, provided they are made aware of the regional opportunities and obtain the necessary endorsements from the appropriate government agencies. Success Immigration qualified immigration professionals will ensure that all of your necessary endorsements are in place prior to submitting your application so that lengthy delays or rejection do not occur. See our Business Class page to find out about special opportunities available in each province or territory.

The ten provinces and three territories with the capital city of each in brackets are:

• Alberta (Edmonton)
• British Columbia (Victoria)
• Manitoba (Winnipeg)
• New Brunswick (Fredericton)
• Newfoundland and Labrador (St. John's)
• Northwest Territories (Yellowknife)
• Nova Scotia (Halifax)
• Nunavut (Iqaluit)
• Ontario (Toronto)
• Prince Edward Island (Charlottetown)
• Quebec (Quebec City)
• Saskatchewan (Regina)
• Yukon Territory (Whitehorse)

Facts

• Canada is the second-largest country in the world, next to the Russian Federation
  
• The population of Canada is over 32 million (2005)
The national emblem is the maple leaf
The national flag is red borders with centered red maple leaf on a white background.
• Canada's birthday is on the first of July each year.
The national animal is the beaver.
The national motto is "From sea to sea".
The national anthem - "O Canada".
Canada is so wide that there are six time zones .

The People of Canada

• Canada had a 2005 population of 32,270,500 Canada has a declining birth rate which is lower than its death rate.
• Currently, Canada relies on immigrants to keep its population growing.
• The Canadian economy is undergoing unprecedented growth, and the federal government encourages immigration to help keep pace with this growth.
• Most of the people live in the southern part of Canada.
• About 77 percent of Canadians live in cities and towns.
• The largest cities are Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. (Toronto: 5.3 million; Montreal: 3.6 million; Vancouver: 2.1 million)
• The two main languages of Canada are English and French.
• French is spoken by about 6 million people.
• Ethnic groups include British Isles origin 28%, French origin 23%, other European 15%, North American Indian 2%, other, mostly Asian, African, Arab 6%, mixed background 26%.
• Canada is the home of over a million Aboriginal people.

The Land

• Canada has the world's longest coastline.
• There are oceans on three sides - Pacific ( west), Atlantic ( east), Arctic (north).
• Nearly one-fourth of all the fresh water in the world is in Canada.
• Glaciers shaped the land and created many lakes (about 2 million lakes).
• The Mackenzie River ( in the N.W.T. ) is the longest river in Canada.
• Ships sail inland on the St. Lawrence River (from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes).
• Forests cover almost half of Canada.
• Canada has one-tenth of the world's forests.

History

• The first people in Canada were the Aboriginal people.
• Explorers and settlers from Western Europe arrived in the 1500s.
• Canada was named by the French explorer Jacques Cartier (1535).
• The name "Canada" comes from the Huron and Iroquois word "Kanata" meaning "village".
• Canada became a country on July 1st, 1867.

Resources

• Canada is a country that is rich in natural resources, especially forests, plants, animals and fish.
• Minerals, metal, natural gas, and oil are some of Canada's nonrenewable resources.
• Hydro-electric power is sold to the United States.
• There are many different types of farms in Canada including grain farms, vegetable farms, fruit orchards, livestock and dairy farms. Farmers and farm managers can qualify for immigration under the Self-employed Immigration Class of our web site.

Exports

• Agricultural products
• motor vehicles and parts
• industrial machinery
• aircraft and aerospace equipment
• telecommunications equipment
• chemicals
• plastics
• fertilizers
• wood pulp
• timber
• crude petroleum
• natural gas, electricity
• aluminum

Transportation (visit our site: Canadian Truckers for transportation jobs in Canada).

• The main highway system (completed in 1962) is called the Trans-Canada Highway.
• It goes from St. John's Newfoundland to Victoria, B.C.
• The highway is 7,604 kilometres long.
• It is the longest national highway in the world.
• The Dempster Highway in the Yukon territory is the northernmost highway.
• The major ports are Vancouver, Churchill, Montreal, Quebec City, Halifax and St. John's.
• The St. Lawrence Seaway has twenty-six locks and five canals which allow ocean-going ships to sail inland into the Great Lakes of Ontario.
• The two main freight railway systems are the Canadian National and the Canadian Pacific Railway.
• Workers began to build the national railroad in 1872.
• The Canadian Pacific Railway was finished in 1885.
• VIA railway provides passenger service.