Increaseaffordable housing stock for Syrian refugees in Canada
Increaseaffordable housing stock for Syrian refugees in Canada
Generaldata about Syrian refugee in Canada
Thestate of Syrian refugees is an issue of concern in Canada. This isbecause records as of 15thMay 2016 show that Canada currently hosts the second highest numberof the refugees in the world, the highest being Germany, at 27,190people (cmhc.ca,2016).As such, there is a need for proper housing for such people. Giventhe fact that the cost of housing in the country is high, there isthe necessity for the country to come up with an affordable housingscheme that will be sustainable for the government and as well notpose any harm to the refugees. In a bid to understand the essence ofproper housing for these persons, it is important to have a view ofthe population of the refugees in different provinces in the country.Vancouver has a population of 1586 while Toronto has about 5032refugees (cic.gc.ca, 2016). The data for the refugees in theprovinces of Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Quebec, was notavailable, thereby, bringing in a gap.
Table1: Distribution of Syrian refugees in Canadian Provinces
Province | Population of refugees |
Alberta | 3778 |
British Columbia | 2823 |
Manitoba | 1025 |
New Brunswick | 1435 |
Newfoundland and Labrador | 225 |
Northwest Territories | N/A |
Nova Scotia | 126 |
Nunavut | N/A |
Ontario | 10336 |
Prince Edward Island | 1240 |
Quebec | N/A |
Saskatchewan | 746 |
Yukon | 15 |
Total | 21749 |
Demographicinformation about Syrian refugees in Canada 
TheSyrian refugees who settled in Canada bear some characteristics asindicated in the following sub-topics
Everysize of family
Theapproved and pending cases for the Syrian refugees in Canada beardifferent characteristics. About 53% of the approved cases had theirfamilies being made up of 5-8 persons. 14% of the approved cases hadone person as a member of a family while 29% of the cases had 2-4people making up one family on application (numbeo.com, 2016). Thefindings are as shown in Figures 1 and 2 below. Given the fact thatthe percentage of the refugees who belong to large family units ishigher, there is a need to put the information into considerationwhile building them houses. As a result, most of the houses builtneed to be large enough to accommodate the many people who may befound in a single family. This practice will ensure that the refugeesare contained in the country in such a way that their standards ofliving are well put into consideration do resemble the normal livesof other inhabitants of the country.
Figure1: Family size (Refugees sponsored by the Government on application) 
Source: cic.gc.ca (2016) as of May 15, 2016
Figure2: Family Size (Non-government Sponsored Refugees, on application)
Source: cic.gc.ca (2016) as of May 15, 2016
Age
Statisticsindicate that at the time of application, about 56% of the refugeeswere 14 years old or younger. This sends a strong message that morethan half of the refugees who settle in the country are children andthey, therefore, do require the amount of support necessary throughthe creation of facilities to accommodate them, such as housing(http://cmhc.ca/en/index.cfm).The age group distribution of the Syrian refugees in Canada is shownin Table 1 below.
Table2: The Syrian Refugees in Canada in Age groups
Age | Government-sponsored refugees | Non- Government-sponsored refugees | |||
Cases Approved (6975) | Cases in progress (14,067) | Cases Approved (7656) | Cases in progress (4712) | ||
0-14 years | 55% | 56% | 27% | 31% | |
15-24 years | 11% | 11% | 16% | 14% | |
25-44 years | 28% | 27% | 33% | 33% | |
45-64 years | 5% | 5% | 19% | 18% | |
65 and above | 1% | 1% | 5% | 4% | |
Source: cic.gc.ca (2016) as of May 15, 2016
Buildingcost in each province 
Forthe sake of comparison, the building costs in different provinces ofCanada will take into consideration the construction of a 3-bedroomapartment.
Table3: Building costs in Canadian Provinces
Province | Building costs (in Canadian $) |
Alberta | 181,000 |
British Columbia | 156,000 |
Manitoba | 173,000 |
New Brunswick | 192,000 |
Newfoundland and Labrador | 201,000 |
Northwest Territories | 190,000 |
Nova Scotia | 161,000 |
Nunavut | 186000 |
Ontario | 195,000 |
Prince Edward Island | 184,000 |
Quebec | 177,000 |
Saskatchewan | 175,000 |
Yukon | 193,000 |
Source:https://www03.cmhcschl.gc.ca/catalog/product
Numberof budgets for housing of refugees
Threebudgets need to be doing the housing project. This will include theapartment construction budget, the rental budget as well as theadministration budget. Rentalinformation for Toronto 
Therental breakdown for apartments in Toronto is as shown in the tablebelow.
Table4: Rental information for Toronto
Rent Per Month (Apartments) | Average |
1 bedroom (in the City Centre) | 1,140.08 C$ |
1 bedroom (Outside the Centre) | 894.79 C$ |
3 bedrooms ( in the City Centre) | 1,883.78 C$ |
3 bedrooms (Outside the Centre) | 1,447.79 C$ |
Source:www.numbeo.com
Concentrationof refugees in Canada
Themap below shows the concentration of Syrian refugees in differentparts of Canada.
Figure3: Concentration of refugees in Canada
Source:http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/privately-sponsored-refugee-map-1.3346250
Problemtree for Syrian refugees
TheSyrian refugees in Canada face a number of problems as indicated inthe problem tree below
Figure3: Problem tree for Syrian refugees in Canada
Source:http://globalnews.ca/news
Projectmanagement 
Theproject will involve the provision of rental housing services for 200Syrian refugee families as well as building houses for other 200refugee families. The rental housing will cost an excess of$8,064,000.00 while the construction cost of houses for 200 familieswill cost about $39,000,000.00. There will be an additional cost of$1,000,000.00 $1,000,000.00 which will cater for the administrationservices of the program. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporationwill take over them management of the activities owing to the immenseexperience, expertise, and logistical capability that the entity has.The various consultants who will be engaged will be crucial for theprovision of the information on the elements and amenities that needto be included in the housing scheme for the refugees. Thecontractors who will be brought on board will play a huge role in theconstruction of the apartments for the refugees and carry outrenovations on the apartments that are meant to provide rentalservices to the other 200 families. The Federal government of Canadawill take charge o the financial management of the project. Thegovernment shall also source additional funding from UNHCR, UNICEF,and other voluntary, non-governmental bodies. The applicant for thehousing project shall be accountable to Citizenship and ImmigrationCanada (CIC) which shall ensure that they adhere to the standardsrequired of them, to reside in Canada(http://www.theglobeandmail.com, 2016). The applicant shall besubmitting annual reports to the body indicating any new developmentssuch as an increase in the family size. The expected reportingfrequencies are that there will be a continual increase in the numberof Syrian refugees in Canada in the coming years. 
References
cbc.ca/news (2016). Canada/privately-sponsored-refugee-map-1.3346250http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/privately-sponsored-refugee-map-1.3346250
cic.gc.ca(2016). http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/refugees/welcome/
cmhc.ca(2016). http://cmhc.ca/en/index.cfm
cmhc.ca/en/hoficlincl(2016). http://cmhc.ca/en/hoficlincl/homain/index.cfm
cmhcschl.gc.ca(2016).https://www03.cmhcschl.gc.ca/catalog/productDetail.cfm?lang=en&cat=192&itm=1&fr=1464840488187
globalnews.com(2016). Challengesfaced by Syrian-refugees-arriving in Canada/http://globalnews.ca/news/2395085/5-challenges-faced-by-syrian-refugees-arriving-in-canada/
numbeo.com(2016). cost-of-living/country/Canadahttp://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_result.jsp?country=Canada
theglobeandmail.com(2016).http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/canada-to-process-10000-syrian-refugees-as-fast-as-possible/article29502636/