Manitoba pledges $1.4M for refugees

Manitoba is pledging $1.4 million to help refugees settle in the province.

The money will go towards humanitarian relief, settlement aid and support to assist integration, Premier Greg Selinger said Thursday.

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It is the second pledge the province has made in an effort to address the refugee crisis unfolding overseas. The first was to accept more Syrian refugees.

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Selinger said Manitobans want to help those in the midst of the Syrian refugee crisis, which has seen tens of thousands of people risking and sometimes losing their lives in a bid to escape their war-torn country.

Selinger said some of the money will be used for humanitarian relief overseas, and some will be used to help refugees who are already here with housing, health care and education needs.

He said if Ottawa allows more refugees into the country, Manitoba could double the number of refugees it accepts.    

"Manitoba is one of those places in this world where we can do more. We already take a very large number of refugees in proportion to our population. But we think we can double that. And we think that will make a difference," he said. 

Selinger said Manitoba could take up to 3,000 refugees a year, up from the current 1,500.

Selinger said $200,000 will go to immediate front-line humanitarian aid for Syrian refugee families.

Local agencies can apply for funds to help refugees until Sept. 30, he added.

The announcement was made at Winnipeg's Knox United Church, which has long played a role in helping refugees get settled in Manitoba.