MY CARA – Canadian Association for Refugees in Africa

Canadian Association for African Refugees (CARA)

About Us

Canadian Association for African Refugees (CARA) is a humanitarian relief organization
with headquarters in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. CARA’s mandate spans to create awareness in
Canada about the rights and plight of refugees, and to mobilize relevant tools as well as
resources to empower these refugees for integration and poverty alleviation. since most refugees
and displaced persons generally remain close to their origin, we take into strong regard their
psychosocial stability to extend same care to refugees and internally displaced persons in Africa.
Refugees are persons fleeing from conflict, wars or persecution in their country of origin.
According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the number of refugees, asylum seekers and
internally displaced persons (IDPs) has reached its highest point since World War 2, with over
108 million persons, including women and children by the end of 2022, indicating an increase of
19 million at the end of 2021. Over 30 million of these populations are in Sub-Sahara Africa.
CARA was founded in December 2018 by a group of human rights defenders as a response to
the systematic lack of information, support and media coverage about the huge refugee
challenges in Canada and Africa by extension, and its consequences on the impact both on the
refugees and the broader Canadian society.

WHAT WE DO

CARA, through dialogue, partnership and advocacy engage to better the status of African
Refugees in a bid to leverage the range of challenges related to integration, autonomy and
livelihood in Canada particularly, then by extension in Africa in several domains.
Within the various programs and initiatives to support refugees, such as the Resettlement
Assistance Program, which provides initial settlement supports, and the Private Sponsorship of
Refugees Program, which allows private individuals and groups to sponsor refugees, CARA
collaborates with the Canadian government, NGOs, community organizations, humanitarian
donors, and provincial and municipal authorities to address challenges and create a welcoming
environment for African refugees. Here are the five key areas:

1. Integration and Settlement:

2. Housing:

3. Employment and Economic Integration:

4. Access to Healthcare and Social Services:

5. Discrimination and Xenophobia:

Mission:

CARA’s Mission is to provide comprehensive humanitarian relief to African refugees and to
empower them through mentoring, resource mobilization and partnerships for poverty alleviation
and livelihood.

Vision:

CARA envisions Canadian society in which every displaced person will arise for a productive,
autonomous and fulfilled life in the dignity of humanity.

Core Values:

In fulfilling CARA’s challenging ambition for humanity, in alignment with the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs), it is committed to its mission by upholding the core values of:
 Inclusivity and Diversity – CARA will promote access and service to all African
refugees, irrespective of sex, age, color or religion.
 Transparency and Integrity – CARA’s management and functioning will be open and
transparent except where strict confidentiality is required. All those acting on its behalf
must demonstrate absolute integrity for humanity.
 Selflessness and Sustainability – Refugees constitute the cause and concern for all
actions and lasting impact