5G in Africa: What’s its potential, Selasi Ahorlumegah?
Naa Oyoe Quartey
With its fast speeds and revolutionary potential, 5G stands out as a noteworthy milestone in the field of […]
Australia announces tightened visa rules, wants fewer migrants
File photo: People cross a street in the city centre following further easing of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions in Sydney, Australia, December 10, 2020. REUTERS/Loren Elliott/File photo
On Monday, Australia announced plans to implement strict student visa policies as well as reducing visas for unskilled workers which are expected to reduce migration of these categories by 50 percent during 2014 – 2016.
This is one of the efforts in a mission that aims to restructure a broken U.S. immigration policy.
According to Reuters news, International students will be subjected to higher standards in regard of language proficiency under these proposed alterations. Second visa applications are also likely to go through a thorough vetting process that may extend the stay of the applicants in this country.
During a media briefing, Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said, “Our strategy will bring migration numbers back to normal, but it’s not just about numbers. It’s not just about this moment and the experience of migration our country is having at this time. This is about Australia’s future.”
He called for a reduction in migrant numbers to a “sustainable point” in the country, characterising the current system as broken. O’Neil also observed that the changes which have been enforced already, will reduce migrants going to Australia.
This is attributed to the expected peak figure of 510,000 for 2022/23. The official projections indicate that the numbers will go down to approximately 200,000 for both 2024/25 and 2025/26, almost reaching the pre-COVID level.
Most of this increased total overseas migration during 2022-23 was attributed to international students by O’Neil.
At the end of the day’s trade, the shares of IDP Education, which caters for placements and educational service providers for international students dropped by more than three per cent.
During such a period when Australia had a deficit of manpower, it boosted up its yearly immigration numbers. Furthermore, increased presence of international workers and students aggravated the housing problem, increasing homeless cases.
62 percent of Australian voters who recently answered a poll on behalf of the Sydney Morning Herald thought there were too many people migrating into their country.
In response, the Australian labour government is focusing on fast-tracked specialist one-week processing time for highly skilled workers. This involves facilitating access of highly skilled migrant workers into highly competitive markets that are also open to workers from other comparable advanced economies.
