dbo:abstract
- The Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program (PSR) is a Canadian government initiative that allows for refugees to resettle in Canada with support and funding from private or joint government-private sponsorship. The government also offers semi-private sponsorship through the Blended Visa Office-Referred (BVOR) program, which connects private sponsors with pre-screened and pre-interviewed refugees. The PSR program is part of the larger Global Refugee Sponsorship Initiative (GRSI), launched in Ottawa in December 2016, led by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Open Society Foundations, the Giustra Foundation, and the University of Ottawa. Established in 1978 under Operation Lifeline, the program has since resettled and provided support for over 200,000 refugees under various initiatives and with fluctuating annual intakes. As of January 2020, the Canadian Government has resettled nearly 300,000 refugees through the PSR program since 1979. The Canadian system is constantly under reform to increase the involvement of refugees to shape their own resettlement experience; this program has influenced refugee policy in other Commonwealth countries as well, such as the UK and Australia. (en)