This research assesses the extent of inter- and intra-provincial geographic mobility of government- and privately-sponsored refugees sent to the destination communities in Alberta in the period 1992-1997. It is limited to the available government landing records. Moreover, this research compares the integration experiences of these refugees, and examines factors that may contribute to their decision to remain in the smaller centres. Control groups from Edmonton and Calgary are included in the study in order to better evaluate refugee experiences in the five target communities. The project is designed to assist policymakers in deciding whether it makes sense to send refugees of a wide variety of origins to cities other than Edmonton and Calgary.
Between 1992 and 1997, a cluster of countries reappears frequently, if not annually, on the list of source countries sending refugees to Alberta. These countries include Bosnia-Hercegovina, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Yugoslavia, Croatia, Ethiopia, Iran, Somali Republic, Guatemala, Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, El Salvador, and U.S.S.R. Other countries that appeared once or more on the list of top 15 refugee-sending countries to Alberta include Bulgaria, Sudan Republic, Thailand, Nicaragua, India, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Honduras, Romania, People’s Republic of China, Poland, Hungary, and Kampuchea Republic. Refugees destined to Alberta have also come, in smaller or larger numbers, from many other countries.