President of the Government visits Azorean Communities in Canada

The President of the Government starts Monday a visit to Canada, where he will meet with the Azorean communities residing in the provinces of Quebec, Manitoba and Ontario. He will also visit institutions promoting social and cultural activities within the communities of Azorean descent and will participate in meetings with entrepreneurs for the presentation of investment opportunities in the Azores.

On the first day of this four-day visit, Vasco Cordeiro visits the Mission Sainte-Croix, a social institution whose action is directed to the Portuguese community in Montreal, and the Centre d'action socio-communautaire de Montréal; the latter was created in 1972 and its action is focused on the integration of socially disadvantaged people from various communities of that city.

On the same day, the President of the Government will meet with the leaders of the House of the Azores of Quebec, which was established in 1978. The first of his visit to Canada will end with a meeting with the Azorean community residing in this province.

On Tuesday, Vasco Cordeiro takes part in a working meeting with Azorean, Luso-Canadian and Canadian entrepreneurs, an event promoted by the Society for the Business Development of the Azores (SDEA) with the aim of presenting investment opportunities in the Azores. Following this meeting, the President of the Government will travel to Winnipeg, where he will meet with the Azorean community of Manitoba. The event is sponsored by the House of the Azores of Winnipeg.

The programme for Wednesday includes a visit to the St. Elizabeth Home, a non-profit housing project supported by the Portuguese community of Manitoba that helps Azorean descendants, and a meeting with Winnipeg entrepreneurs.

The last day of Vasco Cordeiro's visit to Canada will be held in the province of Ontario, more specifically in the city of Toronto, where he will visit the Harbord Collegiate Institute, one of the first secondary schools to teach Portuguese in Canada. Later on, he has a scheduled meeting with Toronto entrepreneurs, also promoted by SDEA.

In the afternoon, the President of the Government visits the company GlobeStar Systems, owned by David Tavares, who emigrated to Canada in 1966. The visit will be followed by a meeting with the Administration Board of the House of the Azores of Ontario, established in 1968. The last day of his visit will end with a meeting with the Azorean community residing in this province.

In 2013, the Luso-Canadian Community celebrated the 60th anniversary of the coming of the first Azorean emigrants to Canada, who arrived in Halifax in May 1953.
Currently, it is estimated that between 65 to 75 percent of the 400 thousand Portuguese emigrants and their descendants living in Canada are of Azorean origin.